Happi's Redemption
by Mykon1
Summary: When he loses the ability to absorb female ki, Happosai must resort to desperate measures to cheat death. He also needs Ranma to help. Rating to be safe due to a fantasy scene.
1. Chapter 1 Prologue

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Prologue

Through the streets of Nerima ward in Tokyo a small figure raced. It was a man, but the size of a child and wearing a gi so dark a purple that it was almost black. From the white hair that formed a fringe around the back of his bald head and the wrinkles on his face it was evident the man was quite old. He had a cloth tied over his head and knotted under his nose as if that was meant to conceal his identity. It was odd that one of such apparent age was so vigorous and energetic.

Over his shoulder the tiny man carried an enormous cloth bag that looked to be made from a bed sheet. It was obvious that the bag was stuffed nearly to overflowing. The small man was being chased by a large group of women. The little man's pursuers were shaking fists and brandishing improvised weapons such as broom handles and mops. They loudly shouted things about having their property returned and calling the man a thief, a pervert and even worse things.

The expression on the tiny thief's face was one of exuberance and joy. He did so love this activity. It made his life so exciting and fun. Even the risk of what the women would do if they caught him added spice to the fun.

There was little chance of him being caught today. He was getting close to home and he put on an extra little burst of speed and bounded extra high. That little bit was enough to lose his pursuit. In enjoyment of this accomplishment for yet another day, he shouted out, "What a haul, what a haul!"

Shortly he arrived at a private home in a residential neighborhood. Attached to the house by a covered walkway, there was a martial arts training hall. A sign near the front gate proclaimed, "Tendo School of Indiscriminate Grappling."

The tiny man didn't bother with the gate, bounding to the top of the privacy wall that surrounded the property and then to an open window on the second floor. This was the room that he had claimed as his own. That wasn't to say that the owner of the home was exactly pleased with him being there, but the homeowner was too much of a wimp to complain much.

The other residents of the house had become sufficiently accustomed to the old man's comings and goings that they didn't take much notice of it any more. At least they didn't pay much attention to it as long as he didn't bother them directly.

The little man set his bag on the floor and opened it, gazing in gleeful rapture at the sight. Panties, bras and other items of feminine lingerie were in the bag. This evening he had really scored with some unusually lacy items.

The aged pervert had great admiration for the designers of women's lingerie. They managed to create true things of beauty to perform such simple functions. Ah, but that was enough looking for now. He got these silky darlings because he needed to touch them. Their beauty was secondary.

The first task was to sort the haul into the various garment types. When he picked up the first pair of panties he gave it a look of mild distaste. Not only was this pair of panties plain looking, it was obviously brand new and never worn. He tossed it aside. This pair of panties would have none of the scents of a healthy woman, none of the body oils and traces of perspiration that made such things so delightful to touch. Most importantly, never worn panties would have no traces of the owner's ki.

While it was something of an exaggeration to say that women's ki was as important to the old man as was breathing, that assessment was not far off the mark. Indeed it was true that the man named Happosai needed to absorb ki either directly from women or from their undergarments or he would die or at least go into a hibernation state.

Today the old man felt more in need of a female ki fix then usual. Even though he hadn't exerted himself more than normal, he felt tired. At least more tired than the day's activities should have made him. He picked up a bra. Ah, that was better. This was one that he had taken off a woman who was still wearing it at the time.

He held the bra in his hands and gently rubbed it against his face. Even if he really only needed the ki residue he still enjoyed the feel and the scent. After he had finished he set the bra almost reverently aside and picked up the next one.

As he continued with this activity he had an odd sense of something wrong. That was strange. He had brought home a big load of pretties and with the exception of the one new item, the rest were just full of ki. What could possibly be wrong?

After going though about a quarter of the bag, he realized something. He was pulling ki from the garments, but not as much as usual. Frowning, he attuned his trained ki senses and examined the ki in the lingerie. The odd thing was that there was still some left in the clothes he had placed on the pile of ones he had thought he was finished with.

He picked up one from the discard pile and examined it again. Yes, there was life energy residue still there. Why had he not been able to draw all of it out? He concentrated on the garment and tried to draw out the last remnants of ki. Try as he might, that last bit of the ki in the garment stayed where it was.

Was he losing his ability to draw ki from used women's garments? If that were the case it did not bode well for the little man's continued existence. He tried with some of the other garments in the discard pile and found the problem was the same. He had drawn all of the ki he could, but in every case it was less than he had been able to get in the past.

This was bad, very bad! He had allowed himself to get so wrapped up in day to day life what with the panty raids and fighting with the boy that he had stopped in his search. After centuries was it even possible to return to what he had been when he had been born? He had to believe it could happen.

In a considerably more somber mood, the tiny man went back to sorting his collection and taking from each garment what ki he could. It was not as much as he wanted or truly needed, but that was no excuse for not getting what was possible.

When he finished, he set the garments aside. He no longer worried about using his iron to press the garments and to store them lovingly away as he had in the past. He had more important concerns.

The aged pervert went to one of his trunks and used his key to unlock it. Then he rummaged around inside until he found a magical artifact. After pulling it out, he inspected it and tried to remember what he knew of the item. Finally he nodded. This would do. The artifact wasn't one that he actually had a use for, but it had sufficient power that he would hopefully be able to trade it for something that would help him.

Now where to take it? There was a dealer of magical items on the south side of the ward who might have something. He placed the magical artifact into a leather pouch and tied the drawstrings to the belt of his gi.

Walking to the window he paused to survey the contents of his room. He had to admit that, aside from his collection of martial arts and magic books and scrolls, most of the stuff he had was junk. Little of it was of actual use, but it comforted him to have it.

Turning back to the window he shook his head. It would seem that he now had a time limit. Before it had always seemed as if he could take all the time he wanted, but that was no longer true. It was not so much that he feared death as he hated to leave this life without accomplishing his greatest longstanding goal.

He exited the window and headed off to a meeting with the dealer of magical antiquities. If that dealer didn't have what he needed, then there were others he could try.

Author's Note: Trying to write from Happosai's POV. Let me know if you think that worked alright. What is this "goal" that he feels he must accomplish before he dies? Stay tuned.

I originally posted the unfinished story "Happi's Redemption" on Media Miner. Since posting it there I have added this prologue and made other additions and corrections. I have chosen this to be my first fic to post on . I hope you like it.


	2. Chapter 2 Happosai Is Sick

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 1

Happosai is Sick

The Nerima Ward of the city of Tokyo, Japan was an odd place. There were some interesting statistics that support that statement. There was a larger percentage of martial artists living in that district than anywhere else in Japan. With that large a pool of talent, it was no surprise that there were more master level or higher practitioners of the Art there than anywhere else. Out of that group of masters there was a small number of individuals who were so strong and skilled that the general population called them "super powered" martial artists.

Another statistic showed that Nerima's property damage resulting from fights between martial artists was higher than anywhere else in Tokyo. Given that fact, one would think the city government would have the police crack down on those martial artists responsible (or at least politely ask them to desist from brawling in the streets.)

One of the main reasons there had never been a major confrontation between the police and the stronger martial artists was because of the crime statistics. To be sure, the level of white collar crime such as embezzlement was a little higher, but violent crimes like muggings, rape, armed robbery and murder were almost nonexistent in the area. The only murders that still happened were the so-called "crimes of passion." One reason for the low crime rate was that the muggers, rapists and others were aware of the fact that in Nerima there was an excellent chance that their choice of victim was more likely to lay the smack down on them than anywhere else.

For those crooks foolish enough to actually try and commit crimes in Nerima they usually were either unlucky enough to pick a martial artist as their victim or to attempt their crime somewhere within earshot of a martial artist. The majority of those criminals often wished they had been captured by the police because they would have received gentler treatment in police custody.

The city did what it could to mitigate the property damage. There were a number of vacant lots throughout the district that were officially designated as combat sites for martial artists. The martial artists who lived in the community were requested to take their fights to one of the vacant lots whenever possible. By city ordinance those lots were to remain vacant and zoned so that nothing would be allowed to be built on them.

Tendo Soun of the Tendo Dojo was a martial artist who was well known in the ward of Nerima. Part of this was due to his membership on the city council. In addition to that his martial arts power and skill had been legendary in his youth. While the middle-aged martial artist had let much of his skills fall into disuse, he still had a keen eye to spot martial arts talent.

One possessor of such talent was Saotome Ranma, practitioner of Masabesu Kakuto Ryo or the Anything Goes School of martial arts. The young man was the son of Soun's old training partner, Saotome Genma. Though only 18 years of age, Ranma had skill and strength in the martial arts rivaling masters double his age and older.

It was because of those skills and that strength that Ranma was out late this Saturday night. At the request of the Neighborhood Watch he had been out looking for a mugger who had been preying on young women.

The young man was uniquely qualified for this task. In addition to his martial arts skills, the teenaged boy had a Chinese water curse. The effect of the curse was that when he was splashed with cold water he turned into an incredibly cute and busty red haired young girl. With her martial arts skills, the Neighborhood Watch felt that she made the perfect decoy target for the mugger.

Thus it was that Ranma was walking up and down the sidewalk in the area of town where most of the muggings had taken place. She was wearing a long black wig, a short skirt and her generous breasts were held down by bindings. It was impossible to completely contain that impressive bosom, but by pressing them down, it had the effect of making Ranma look much younger than she was. The glasses she wore added to that illusion.

The young looking girl paced back and forth along the length of a block, regularly passing in front of the entrance to an alley. She glanced occasionally at a wristwatch and then up the street, giving the impression that she was waiting for someone.

From across the street a man paused and looked at the girl. The man was tall and muscular, his dark hair cropped short. He wore black denim jeans and a dark T-shirt with a black jacket over it. The man was also rather ugly. That fact, along with an unpleasant personality and rough manners, may have explained why he was where he was rather than out on a date.

When the girl was at the end of the block opposite from the corner the man had been standing on, he crossed the street but didn't move directly toward the girl. Instead he went on down the street at a right angle to the path the girl was pacing. He circled around to the far side of the block and entered into the other end of the alley.

When the man reached the shadows in the end of the alley just short of the sidewalk the girl was on, he checked to make sure she was still there. Yes, she was. It really was late for a girl that young to be out alone. He made a careful point to look around to see that no one was coming to meet with her.

Satisfied that the person or people the girl was waiting for were not likely to interrupt, he lunged out of the alley to grab her arm. His intention was to pull her into the alley but that plan didn't work out quite as he had hoped.

The next thing the mugger knew was that his own arm was grabbed and he was sent flying through the air to land painfully on his back on the sidewalk. What the hell? He got up and looked to find the girl standing in a loose ready stance.

What was infuriating was the smirk on the girl's face. She said, "I was wondering if you were going to show. I was about ready to give up."

This wasn't going according to the usual script. Well, so what! The girl was small and didn't look all that strong. She must have used some kind of judo throw on him. Maybe he had made some kind of noise that had alerted her to his presence in the alley. He looked around and still couldn't see anyone.

"That was a good move, kid," he acknowledged. "That doesn't mean you've beaten me. You'd better give me all your money and any jewelry you've got or I'm gonna hurt ya."

"You're welcome to try, jerk," the girl responded, the smirk still firmly in place.

The mugger rushed forward and moved through the space where the girl had been. She had leapt into the air to an impossible seeming height. When she came down she landed on the top of his head and then leapt upward again, pushing him down so that his face impacted painfully on the paving of the sidewalk.

As he started to push himself up, the mugger heard the girl say, "Take my advice and stay down."

People didn't get into street crime because of their high intelligence. This mugger helped to prove that when didn't take the advice. He was angry now and after getting to his feet he struck at the girl again with one of his most powerful punches. The girl moved just slightly so the punch missed by barely a millimeter.

The next thing he knew the girl was shouting something about chestnuts and he was feeling the impact of dozens of blows on all of the vital points of his body. Surely a girl that small couldn't hit that hard. Was someone with her that was fighting for her?

When the storm of punches stopped, the mugger found himself lying on his back again. He looked blearily around and now could see the flashing lights of police cars approaching. There were five men standing around him and the girl in a rough circle. He groaned.

One of the men laughed at the mugger's obvious discomfort and commented, "You should have taken her advice and stayed down. It would have saved you some pain."

"Who are you people?" the man on the ground demanded.

"Us? We're the Neighborhood watch," the leader of the group announced. The man who had spoken held up a walkie talkie and shook it, saying, "We called the police as soon as Ranma threw you. They were expecting the call, that's why they got here as quickly as they did."

"You set a trap for me?"

Laughing, the girl nodded and said, "If you were able to figure that out, I guess you're smarter than you look."

The man with the radio admonished in an amused tone of voice, "Now Ranma, don't tease the mugger."

At that moment policemen moved in and helped the mugger to his feet. Once he was standing, they handcuffed his wrists together behind his back and read him his rights. As they led him to the squad car, the mugger demanded to know, "How can a little girl fight like that?"

He looked over to the girl and saw her taking off the wig and glasses and handing them to one of the Neighborhood watch men. Bright red hair was revealed and without the glasses she looked a bit more mature. She still didn't look big enough to be any threat in a fight.

One of the policemen laughed and told the mugger, "That 'little girl' is Saotome Ranma, one of the strongest martial artists in Tokyo. You're lucky she was holding back or we would be taking you to the hospital now instead of jail."

The mugger then was moved into the back seat of the car, while the girl and three of the Neighborhood Watch members got into the second car. Shortly they were at the police station. The mugger was taken to the jail in the back of the building while Ranma and the rest gave their statements.

When they were done being interviewed, Ranma ducked into the restroom and changed from her "bait" clothes into her customary black pants and red silk sleeveless Chinese shirt. She also unwrapped the bindings to give her breasts some freedom. She could have used the hot water in the restroom to change back to male, but decided against it.

As she got out of the restroom, she looked at the clock. It was late and she had to get going. She asked, "Are you guys done with me for now?" 

"Yeah, we're done," one of the policeman acknowledged. "Did you need a ride home?"

"Nah, I'm good," the girl answered. "It's not that far."

"As you wish," the cop said with a shrug. The guys from Neighborhood Watch had agreed to the ride. He knew that this girl could make up the distance to the Tendo Dojo by jumping from rooftop to rooftop.

The redhead had chosen to head straight back home because it was late and she was tired. She would change back to male form before going to bed, but changing sooner just wasn't worth the trouble. If she had changed back to male at the police station there was an excellent chance she would get splashed or rained on or something else to change her to female before getting home.

Pausing on the roof of the house across the street from the Tendo Dojo, Ranma opened her mouth in a huge yawn. The reason for her fatigue was more due to the late hour than the exertion of fighting the mugger. The man was a big bruiser who would have been intimidating to an unskilled woman, but no match for a martial artist of Ranma's skills. Taking the guy down hadn't even caused the redhead to break a sweat.

She jumped down to the street and landed lightly on her feet, flexing her knees to soften the impact. From there she proceeded toward the gate of the Tendo home. It was late enough that some of the residents of the home would probably be in bed already. Out of consideration for the people trying to sleep, Ranma leapt over the wall instead opening the gate. While not terribly noisy, the gate wasn't silent either.

Ranma almost tripped and fell on her face when she nearly landed on top of something blocking the path between the gate and the front door. After a moment to recover her balance, she took a closer look at the obstruction. It appeared to be a human body dressed in a dark colored gi. The body was as small as a child but the head seemed disproportionately large. The features of the person's face were obscured by darkness, but from what little illumination was provided by street lights it was obvious that the person was bald with what appeared to be a fringe of white hair, bushy white eyebrows and a thin mustache.

Ranma knew only one bald person of such diminutive stature as the body in front of her. This had to be Happosai, Grand Master of the Founding School of Anything Goes Martial Arts. Even for a man who claimed to be 300 years old, he was usually bursting with energy and leaping about, stealing women's underwear or jumping onto the women and fondling their bosoms or butts. In contrast to that energetic image, the form on the ground in front of currently female martial artist was lying utterly still.

"O-old freak?" The girl's tone was hesitant and questioning. She received no response.

What this some kind of trick? Was the old man playing possum to get her to come in close so he could more easily glom onto her breasts to cop a free feel?

She decided to try again, "Uh… Master Happosai? Are you alright?"

This time when she got no response she stepped forward and with her toe, gently prodded the body. There was still no response and the body was limp. It was starting to look like the old man might actually be dead.

She went in closer and knelt, placing a hand on the man's neck, feeling for a pulse. She found the vein in his neck and detected the soft sensation of a pulse. It seemed weak and when she leaned close enough she could feel his breath on her cheek. His breathing was quite shallow but at least he was still alive. But what was wrong with him?

Ranma decided that she needed more than the cursory exam she had been able to perform so far. The redhead attuned her ki senses and used them to probe the old man's body and aura. She could find no signs of obvious injury but Happosai's ki levels were dangerously low. He may not have been dead, but he was far from healthy.

Even though Ranma held little love for the aged pervert, she wouldn't wish him or anyone else dead. She would just wish him living in a different country or maybe even on a different continent. Antarctica might be nice. There shouldn't be anything other than penguins for him to molest there.

The girl let out a big sigh. It was a martial artist's duty to protect the weak, or so she had been taught. Normally that meant protecting people and especially women from the actions of the elderly martial arts master. This time it seemed that it was the old man himself who was in need of help. She had done this before. When the old man had been drained and hurt, she protected him from her own father and from Tendo Soun.

Mentally cursing herself and silently praying this wasn't some scam the old man was pulling, Ranma picked up the small body. Without question the world would be a better place without the old freak in it. Unfortunately, her moral code wouldn't let her leave a sick man lying on the ground. Technically she would be living up to the letter of that martial artist's code if she had just gone inside and called for an ambulance. However, she felt a strong intuition that the old man's problem was not something that could be helped by conventional medicine.

The aged pervert's body was light and offered no encumbrance in getting through the door. Shortly Ranma deposited the tiny form of master Happosai on the sofa. Now that she had the old man in the light of the living room, the girl noticed that his right hand was clutching something. From that fist there trailed a leather thong as if the object were intended to be worn as a necklace or pendant. Ranma tugged at the bit of leather but couldn't pull the object out of the little man's hand. How someone who was so limp otherwise was able to keep such a tight grip on anything was a mystery.

Abandoning her attempt to see what was clutched in Happosai's hand, Ranma checked over the still form.

Ever sensitive to the Wa of the house, the eldest of the Tendo daughters, Kasumi walked into the room, wearing a robe over her nightgown. She had "sensed a disturbance in the Force" and had come to investigate.

The young woman saw the old man lying on the couch and asked, "Oh my! Has something happened to Grandfather Happosai?"

Ranma shook her head. "I don't know. When I got home he was lying on the front walk, unconscious. I have no idea how long he way lying there. I couldn't find any sign of obvious wounds and there is no smell of liquor on his breath. Other than some worn spots, his clothing isn't torn. I can't see any bruises on his face or hands, so I don't think he's been in a fight. I can only think that maybe he's sick. Maybe he got some food poisoning or it could even just be old age catching up to him."

Kasumi considered that. "But he always seemed so vigorous, so full of energy."

Ranma nodded but had a distracted expression as if what Kasumi has said suggested something to her. Finally she snapped her fingers and said, "Energy! Maybe that's it."

Now looking puzzled Kasumi asked, "What do you mean, Ranma?"

The redhead turned to the brunette and said, "My Pop and yours said the old freak needs female ki like you or I need air to breathe. From what I can see, I think maybe he ran out of female ki and couldn't find a girl to grope and didn't have any of his 'silky darlings' to recharge."

The older girl nodded, worry evident on her face. She asked, "What can we do?"

Ranma frowned in thought. "I'm not sure. I guess could try to give him some of my ki. Since I'm in girl form right now, it should be what he needs. It's the only thing I can think of that might help."

Kasumi nodded. While she had read many of the medical books she had borrowed from Dr. Tofu, this seemed to be something beyond regular medicine. She would let Ranma do what she could.

Preparing herself, Ranma attuned her ki senses again. This time she placed a hand on either side of the old man's face and concentrated on forming a connection with his aura. When she felt herself in touch with his life force, she began to push some of her own ki into him. The odd thing was that she could feel some kind of resistance. The resistance was not strong enough to stop her, so she continued to push past it. After a while she could sense Happosai's ki reserve building to a point where his life was no longer in danger.

After some more of this treatment the little man began to moan softly and move a bit. When he opened his eyes, Ranma pulled her hands back and broke the connection to his aura.

At first the aged pervert's eyes were glazed and not seeing what was in front of him. It took the old man a moment to be able to focus enough to recognize the people around him. Happosai's eyes scanned his surroundings. When he spoke his voice sounded even rougher than normal. "Ranma, Kasumi? I made it back to the dojo?"

Ranma nodded. "You got here. What happened to you, old man?"

The elderly martial arts master heaved a sigh and said, "I was running on empty. I've got a problem absorbing female ki. It started a couple weeks ago." He stopped and looked around again. Noticing darkness through the windows, he asked, "Is it still Saturday? What time is it?"

Kasumi supplied, "Yes, it's still Saturday. It's rather late. I was in bed and almost asleep when I sensed something wrong downstairs."

The old man nodded. He had a thoughtful expression. "What I have to say to you will be long in the telling. It might be better if you both went to bed and got some sleep. I think I've got enough ki now to keep me going for a while. At least as long as I don't get in any fights. Thank you, Ranma. You probably saved my life. I'm still pretty weak, could you carry me to my room?"

Ranma approached but paused and said, "This'd better not be an excuse to grope me."

The elderly martial artist sighed and said, "I have a confession to make."

The redhead frowned. "What confession."

The old man admitted, "I can absorb ki as efficiently by touching a woman's hand as I can by groping her breasts or butt."

Both Ranma and Kasumi momentarily froze and stared with wide eyes. Finally Ranma spoke up, "I'm guessing the explanation for that's going to be part of that 'long story' you want to tell us tomorrow."

He nodded. "I think it would be best if the whole family were here, including Soun and Genma. It's time they learned some truths I never told them before. The story of my life is very different from what everyone thinks it is."

As Ranma picked up the old man, she grumpily thought to herself, "_Now he's just trying to build up the drama_."

The girl carried the old man up the stairs and through the door into his room. She gently placed him on the futon and pulled the blanket over him. When she left, she went to the bathroom and used the hot water to change back to male before heading off to bed. Genma was already asleep in panda form and snoring loudly. Ranma shook his head, muttering about the "useless furball" as he settled himself for sleep.

Predictably, Ranma woke up to the sensation of flying through the air as he was thrown out the window. Moments later an angry wet, red haired girl charged out of the koi pond shouting, "Damn it, Pop! You knew I was out late for Neighborhood Watch duty. Couldn't you let me sleep late even once?"

The bald martial artist wasn't impressed. "No sleeping late for you, boy! Do you think an enemy would go easy on you because you were up late?" He launched a kick at his currently female son.

Ranma wasn't in the mood for it. She dodged the kick and used her chestnut fist speed to land dozens of punches on her father. The bald man fell unconscious into the pond to float there as a panda. The girl couldn't understand why her father used those ambush tactics anymore. In both of her forms Ranma totally outclassed Genma and this had been true for some time. The only reason he could still occasionally win was because of some tricks he hadn't taught his son yet. Even those tricks wouldn't work much longer as Ranma was learning counters for them.

As Ranma stood glaring at the panda in the pond, Kasumi handed her a towel and a kettle of hot water. Ranma thanked the elder Tendo sister and poured some of the water on herself before using the towel to dry off.

After handing the towel and kettle back to Kasumi, Ranma said, "After the panda comes to, please ask him to join us for breakfast. I think we all need to hear Master Happosai's story. I'm guessing everyone will want to wait until after breakfast. I'm going to go see if he needs help coming down."

Seeing the elder Tendo girl's nod, Ranma headed up the stairs. He rapped lightly on the door and was answered by the question, "Who's there?"

"It's Ranma."

The old man's voice called out through the door, "Come in."

Ranma never really felt comfortable going into the elder martial artist's room or at least not when he was in there. He was male at the moment so he hoped that he didn't need to fear groping. Although in the past that didn't always mean he was safe because Happosai often would have water ready to splash him.

This time there was no attack forthcoming. The older man looked up as Ranma stepped into the room and in a strangely serious tone he said, "Thank you Ranma. You saved my life last night."

The boy bowed to the old master and asked, "How are you feeling?"

"Tired," confessed the tiny man. "But I do feel a lot better than I did yesterday. I think I feel good enough to walk but I don't think I can jump around like I usually do."

The young man studied the older one carefully for a moment. "I came up to see if you needed help. Do you feel up to eating breakfast?"

The diminutive martial artist laughed at that. "I'd have to be dead to miss one of Kasumi's meals. I'm not dead yet."

Ranma watched as the little man walked to the door. It was true that he didn't move with his normal vigor but he at least seemed steady on his feet. Ranma nodded and followed him out of the room, closing the door behind him.

As they headed toward the stairs Ranma asked, "So are you going to say what happened to you last night?"

The bald headed man nodded. "Yes, after breakfast."

Ranma suppressed an urge to argue and just sighed. After all, the meal would be over soon enough and answers would be given then. He could wait that long.

They got downstairs as Kasumi was putting out the dishes of food for the meal. The rest of the family was sitting down at the table. Apparently Genma had availed himself of hot water as he was again in human form. Both Soun and Genma went a little pale at seeing their master walking beside Ranma.

That was when they noticed that the little man was just walking. He was not leaping along, he even had a serious expression on his face.

Before either man could say anything the old master spoke, "Boys, the years are catching up with me. But before you try to bury me, I've got some things I need to tell you. I want to tell everyone some of the reasons why I behave the way I do."

Ranma fixed his father with a glare and said, "I want to hear what he has to say. I know you have your own grievances against the old man, but right now he's too weak to fight back. You know how I feel about fighting the weak."

He paused and looked down at the aged martial artist. Turning back to the fathers, he told them, "Before you try for any kind of revenge or punishment, you could at least do him the simple courtesy of hearing what he has to say."

Soun got a speculative look on his face. "The master… is weak?"

Ranma nodded. "When I got back from catching that mugger last night, I found the old man lying on the front walk, more dead than alive. I was able to transfer some my ki to him to keep him going, but I think that's only a temporary solution."

Genma and Soun exchanged a look. If the master was weak enough to be vulnerable, they could wait. Vengeance was not denied, only delayed. Besides that, they were also curious to hear what he had to say.

As everyone was eating, the mood was somber. The old man had done little to endear himself to the members of this family, and much to antagonize them. Indeed, the only person who held no animosity toward Happosai was Kasumi. Considering her sweet nature, it was it was hard to imagine the young woman harboring bad feelings toward anyone.

After the food was finished Happosai said, "Kasumi dear, after the dishes are cleared would you also come to the living room? You deserve to hear what I have to say as well as the rest. You can wash the dishes after I've had my say."

Kasumi nodded. "As you wish, grandfather."

After the dishes were cleared from the table and placed in the sink, everyone gathered in the living room and Happosai began. "The first thing I need to say is that much of what you believe about me is not true. Ranma, what did these two tell you about my touching women to absorb ki from them."

The young man responded, "They told me that you had been doing it for so long you became dependent on it. They said that for you touching women is as important as breathing."

"As I thought," the old man said. He turned to the fathers. "You boys think I need to fondle women in the same way as a drug addict needs his drugs. You think I'm addicted."

The two middle-aged men looked confused. Genma asked, "Well, aren't you?"

Happosai shook his head. "Those addicted to drugs and other substances can sometimes stop. While it may be hard for them to do, it is still possible for most, although some become so dependent that it would kill them to stop."

He paused a moment to let his audience consider that. "I really would die without female ki. The only reason I was able to survive being sealed in the cave was by putting myself into a state of hibernation. Still, I can understand why you boys would want to do that because I did treat you badly."

Once again he paused to give everybody in the room time to absorb that statement. The people there exchanged looks of astonishment as if asking the question what is this creature in their presence and what had it done with the real Happosai. They didn't think their master would ever admit to treating his students in a way that was not required by training.

The old man resumed speaking. "Ever since I hit puberty I've needed female ki to keep me alive."

Ranma raised a hand as if he were at school. The old man smirked momentarily at the gesture before indicating the boy with a gesture of his own hand.

The pigtailed boy said, "Last night you told me that you don't actually need to grope a woman's boobs or butt. You can get ki from her just as easily by touching a woman's hand. If that's true, why grope them? Why do you act like such a pervert all the time?"

The Grandmaster shrugged. "Mostly the reason is that is a lot easier to find unwilling victims than it is to recruit willing volunteers. I don't always have time to ask a woman if she would be willing to hold my hand. You should have noticed that my attentions to members of the fair sex never go beyond groping."

Ranma and the rest nodded. To the best of their knowledge Happosai had never sexually assaulted any woman. He had fondled many and stolen enormous quantities of lingerie, but he had never gone beyond that.

The old man's manner became even more subdued. "It may surprise you to hear that after centuries of life, you people are the closest thing I have to a family. There may be cousins of mine still around, but I've had no contact with members of my birth family for so long that I would be a complete stranger to them now."

He looked around and said after another pause, "I want to tell you a story. It will sound like a fairy tale, so I ask that you hear the whole thing before you ask any questions. Can you agree to that?"

The other people in the living room shared looks. Finally they nodded. Soun turned back to Happosai and said, "We will listen."

Author's Note: I think I made a mistake in posting this story in the crossovers section. The Senshi will be in the story, but it is more of a cameo appearance than them being a major part of the story. I don't know if putting this in the main Ranma section would be easy or hard. I suppose I could delete it from crossovers and re-post in the main Ranma section. I'd welcome any suggestions in that regard. Until I hear from someone, I'll keep this where it is.

This chapter is slightly revised and expanded from what I posted on Media Miner. I added the section on Ranma's fight with the mugger.

This chapter was mainly setup for what will be coming. The next chapter will contain explanations and a back story you might not expect.


	3. Chapter 3 Happi's Tale

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma ½ Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 2

Happi's Tale

Once upon a time (or 305 years ago if you prefer) there lived a cruel and ambitious man. He was a military man, in command of troops who were charged with the defense of his territory. To further his ambitions he desperately wanted for his firstborn child to be a son. He had many plans for that child. I'm sure Saotome and Tendo here can understand that feeling. The main difference between you boys and the man of this story is in the scope of his ambitions.

His male child would be the tool the cruel man would use to gain a higher level of political power. By use of martial arts skills, a high level of education and with the father's backing, the son would gain power and open doors for the cruel man.

When his wife became pregnant, the cruel man was delighted. He was sure he would have the son he wanted. He told all of his friends and the men in his command what things he would do with his son and the things he would teach the boy. With the cruel man's teachings, the boy would rise to a position of power higher than his father had.

When the child was born the cruel man was severely disappointed. The baby was a girl. A girl wouldn't be able to wield the kind of power that the cruel man craved, not in the Japan of that era. All of those ambitions would come to nothing, the plans not completed.

For most men such a disappointment would not be a major thing. They would just shift their hopes for fulfillment of their plans to the next child or the one after that. This was not so with the cruel man of this story. Besides being cruel and ambitious, the man was also impatient. He didn't want to wait for a second child. He reasoned that the second child might also be a girl and then what would he do?

In a neighboring village there lived a witch. This woman helped out her neighbors with minor spells, love potions, good luck charms and the like. It was claimed that she had real powers and could accomplish much bigger enchantments than the simple spells she used in her village.

Based on this reputation, the cruel man sought out the witch and demanded that she use her magic to change his firstborn child into a boy so that the man's ambitions might be achieved. The witch refused. She explained that working such a change on a baby was a terrible thing and could be damaging to the child's mind. It could even cause the child to go mad when he grew up.

The cruel man didn't take the refusal well. He insisted. When the witch stood by her refusal, the cruel man had her beaten. When she had healed enough from the beating, he told her that if she didn't do what he wanted, he would have her given to his soldiers as a party favor. She would be raped over and over again. When she finally became pregnant, she would be tossed aside.

Faced with such a fate, the witch agreed to cast the requested spell. When she did the cruel man's daughter became his son. The cruel man was satisfied and paid the witch handsomely and let her go. Some thought it odd that the witch left her home in the next village and disappeared. The cruel man shrugged it off. Likely the witch didn't fully trust the cruel man's word that she would not be bothered again. It was not important.

The father set about training his child. From the moment the child could first walk, he was trained in martial arts. He was to become the greatest martial artist alive as well as educated in many other things as well. When the time was right the boy would move out of his home town and use his skills to become a leader.

While it didn't show up right away, there was something wrong with the child. He didn't grow like he should have. He remained small for his age. When the boy reached the age of twelve he began puberty. While small for his age, he was only a little short, not freakishly so. When puberty hit he stopped growing and began to get smaller. The child finally came to resemble a gnome.

The cruel man was furious. He assumed that the witch must have done something. There had to have been something wrong with the spell she had used to change the child from female to male. It may have been a botched spell, but there was also the chance that it was deliberate sabotage.

While angry, the father didn't feel that his ambitions were destroyed. His second child was born male and he had begun to have that child trained as the first had been. He had reasoned that something could have happened to his firstborn and it was only wise to have a backup plan.

Showing the kind of man he was, the father disowned his firstborn son and threw him out, leaving him to fend for himself. Fortunately for the child, part of the training he had received included survival skills, so he was able to travel and live off the land when he could. Few people wanted to associate with the child because of his appearance and small stature.

In spite of the martial arts training the boy had and the hard exercise that had toughened him up, he found himself sickening after he set out on his journey. In only a few cases did he find himself feeling strong. Oddly enough those times were after he had been touched by a woman who had thought him to be a child.

Not long after that, he stumbled upon the village where the witch had moved. Since the woman had moved away while the boy was still a baby, he didn't recognize her. However The witch was able to recognize the boy because of the signature trace of her magic that her spell had left on the boy. She approached him to find out what had happened. Considering what she knew of the father's ambitions, the witch had not expected to find the son wandering the countryside.

The boy was grateful for a sympathetic ear and poured out his whole sad story. When the witch realized what had happened she was filled with remorse. In trying to get back at the man who had abused her, she had afflicted an innocent child. Her attempt at revenge had failed. What she had done to the child had been an inconvenience to the cruel man, little more.

The witch explained to the boy what she had done, the spell that had changed a female baby into a male. In addition to the spell there was also a curse separate from sex change and yet linked to it. It had been that curse that had caused the child to change into the gnome-like creature when he reached puberty. Without that curse he might have grown into a normal looking male child.

The boy had wanted to hate the witch for what she had done to him, but he found he could not. He realized that she had been desperate. She was beaten and threatened with rape and had fought back in what may have seemed to be the only way available to her at the time. He did think to ask why the witch couldn't have simply cast the sex change spell and think up a way to attack the cruel man directly later. The answer was that she simply didn't think of that until later, she was too angry at the time. By the time she was able to think more calmly, it was too late to correct her error.

The witch felt guilty for what she had done to an innocent child and vowed that she would do what she could to help. She told the boy that the reason for the strange weakness and why the touch of a woman could relieve that weakness. It was a side effect of the curse that caused it and the fact that the soul within the male body was still that of a girl. The male body couldn't generate enough female ki to sustain the female soul within and the boy needed infusions of such ki to stay alive and strong.

The combination of the sex change spell and the curse created a condition of imbalance in the boy's body and he would need infusions of female ki for the rest of his life. There was a chance that the boy could someday be cured and restored to a female body. One way to do that was the water from the Spring of Drowned Girl in China. However, there was a problem with such a cure. The magic of the witch's curse was so structured that the curse in the girl water would fight with the magic of the original curse. The witch was not sure, but thought that this conflict would cause the curse victim to die in agonizing pain.

What would be needed for the boy to be fully cured was a two step process. First the curse had to be neutralized. Then an application of water from the Spring of Drowned Girl would change the boy back into the girl he should have been from the start. To neutralize the curse would require magic that the witch no longer had access to. She knew of a number of charms and talismans that might do the job but didn't possess any of them herself.

So it was that the young boy and the witch began to travel together. They spent nearly twenty years together searching for one of the talismans that would either break the curse or at least suppress it. Even suppressing the curse would do the job and allow the girl water to make the transformation. Once the boy was changed back to a female the curse would dissipate on its own when the spell that was its anchor was removed.

In the twenty years of traveling together the witch taught her companion all she knew of magic. The young man would also use their travels to further his training in martial arts. Thus it was that on their travels they would stop at times to study with various sorcerers, witches, martial arts masters, temples and the like. While the young man and the witch traveled together, she gave him regular infusions of her own female ki.

After twenty years of travel Noriko, the witch, came down with an illness and died. The young man continued his travels and furthered his training.

Happosai stopped the telling of his story. There was silenced for a while as everyone thought about the implications of the tale.

Nabiki looked thoughtful as she asked, "So did this cruel man achieve his ambitions using his second child?"

"No," responded the aged martial arts master. "I wasn't there to witness it, but I heard that the cruel man died. He fell in his bath and broke his neck. His son went on to become a minor government functionary. If the story I heard can be believed, his job was to be in charge of garbage collection and disposal for a small city."

Ranma looked confused and asked, "You said that the witch knew that the waters of Nyaniichuan would cure you. That would mean that you knew about Jusenkyo, right?"

The old man nodded.

The pigtailed martial artist shook his head. "Then I don't understand. If you knew about the cursed waters why did you bathe baby Taro in a cursed pool? Didn't you know what would happen to him?"

The aged grandmaster shook his head. "Noriko told me that cursed magic water was what I needed to cancel out the spell on me. She knew that the water came from China, but she didn't know where in China. On top of that, she didn't know the name of Jusenkyo and I didn't learn of it until later."

Akane broke in, "So when you were at Jusenkyo…"

He finished, "I didn't know that was where the water I needed came from. Needless to say, when I saw the effect the water had on Taro, I figured it out."

Nabiki now asked, "So, when you found out that you were at the source of the water that could reverse the spell on you, what did you do?"

The tiny man said, "You have to remember that I was not able to use the water on myself while my curse was active. What I did do was to carefully collect some of the Nyaniichuan water into bottles that I then sealed. I hid those bottles in caves in many of the valleys around Jusenkyo. There were valleys that nobody lived in at the time and as far as I know, those valleys are still empty of people now."

Nabiki then asked, "What I don't understand is why girl water? Sure you were born a girl, but if you were changed to male when you were a baby, would you even have any memory of it at all?"

He shook his head. "No, I have no memory. The problem for me now is that I am losing the ability to absorb ki from women. Ranma, when you were giving me your ki did you notice a problem?"

The boy frowned as he nodded. "When I was pushing my ki into you I felt some kind of resistance. It wasn't strong. It didn't take much effort to push past it."

Happosai explained, "That resistance may not have stopped you from pushing ki into my aura, but it is enough to prevent me from absorbing ki from a woman by simply touching her. When I told you I was too weak to grope you last night when you carried me upstairs, I was only telling part of the truth. Even if I had groped your breasts, it wouldn't have done me any good. The resistance would have prevented me from getting any ki from your body."

From a pocket he pulled out an object strung on a leather thong. "I believe Ranma saw the leather thong on this but I was gripping it too tight for her to see the carving." He handed it to Ranma, who took a closer look at it. It appeared to be a carving of stone. The carving looked like something from South American Indians, Mayans or Incas or something like that. (Ranma was a little weak on the subject of those ancient tribes.)

As Ranma handed the carving to Akane, Happosai said, "It is called the Amulet of Ortiz. The story goes that around two hundred years ago or more a Spanish wizard named Ortiz traveled to what they were then calling the New World. He visited an ancient Mayan city and took a piece from a broken statue of an ancient god. He carved bit of broken stone into a smaller representation of that same god and then infused it with his own magic."

As she handed the amulet to Nabiki to look at, Akane asked, "What does this amulet do?"

The tiny man replied, "It was created as a magical defense. In a fight between magic users, having an amulet to handle at least part of your defense means you could devote more of your energy to offense. It could mean the difference between winning and losing."

In a thoughtful tone, Ranma asked, "That sounds like it's meant to stop a new curse. Will it work on a curse that has been in place for hundreds of years?"

The old man raised an eyebrow. It always surprised him when Ranma showed these flashes of intelligence in maters outside of martial arts. "That's actually a good question. I checked and it will work on my curse. I'm sorry to say that it won't do anything to a Jusenkyo curse like yours. It seems the enchantment on the amulet doesn't treat a Jusenkyo curse as if it were an attack."

Nodoka asked, "If it will do what you need, why don't you put the amulet on now?"

The old man got a grim expression. He told them, "As much as the curse hurt me, it also helped me. It is that curse that has allowed me to live as long as I have. I think it may have been the only thing keeping me alive. But there is a price. Have you ever seen a movie where a very old man was using magic to keep himself alive and young?"

They all nodded except Ranma. For the boy's benefit, Happosai explained, "I think movie makers are a little too fond of this special effect. When the old man in the movie loses his magic you see him start to age rapidly so that in seconds he's nothing more than dried up skeleton and a short time later a pile of dust that usually blows away in a breeze. If I were younger, that wouldn't be such a problem, but now…" He shook his head.

He paused a moment and said, "It would probably take minutes for me instead seconds, but my true age would still catch up with me in a relatively short time. That's why someone must have Nyaniichuan water ready to throw on me as soon as I put on the amulet."

Ranma frowned at this. He asked, "No offense old man, but why wouldn't the cursed water just turn you into a woman who looks like the old ghoul's sister?"

The aged martial arts master looked surprised. "You didn't know?"

The pigtailed martial artist looked annoyed. "Didn't know what?"

"About Jusenkyo curses?"

Ranma wondered what the old man was babbling about. The boy almost growled, "Would you stop trying to make it a dramatic presentation and just get to the point!"

The little man looked down at the floor for a moment before saying, "I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you, but water of Naniichuan is not a cure for you or even someone with an animal curse."

"WHAT!" Genma almost screamed. "If that were true, why didn't you tell us? Why did you let us go on believing that we could get a cure that way?"

The old man chuckled with little humor. It didn't seem so funny to him now. "I was messing with you. When you get as old as I am there isn't a lot left that can provide entertainment. Watching you scramble for a cure was fun to watch."

Controlling his anger, Ranma decided that it was time to ask a slightly more intelligent question. He was pretty sure he already knew the answer but wanted confirmation. "Why wouldn't Naniichuan be a cure for another Jusenkyo curse?"

Happosai was glad to see the boy was not allowing anger to cloud his reasoning. He asked, "Do you remember what happened to Taro when he got another curse?"

"What's he talking about, boy?" Genma demanded.

The young man nodded as if he had been expecting the old man's answer. For Genma's benefit he now said, "When we first met Taro he had the curse from the spring of Drowned Yeti riding an ox, holding an eel and a crane. The cursed form that came from that looks like a flying minotaur with the tail of an eel. Later he got splashed with water from the spring of drowned octopus (but don't ask me how an octopus can drown.) All that did to his cursed form was to add tentacles and gave him the ability to shoot ink."

Scowling, Genma demanded, "So? What is all of that supposed to mean?"

Ranma shook his head sadly. "I don't know why I didn't see it before. Maybe I didn't see it because I didn't want to believe it. What the Master is saying is that Jusenkyo curses don't replace each other, they mix."

The bald martial artist looked confused. "What do you mean, mix?"

The pigtailed youth said, "If I understand what he's saying right, you really don't want to get splashed with Naniichuan water. We often call you 'the panda' or 'panda man' as a sort of nickname. If you got splashed with Naniichuan you would be a panda man for real. Your cursed form would be a half panda, half human. If I got splashed with it, I'd turn into some kind of half man, half woman freak."

Happosai nodded. "I think the medical term for that is 'hermaphrodite.' It's a person with both male and female organs. At the wedding when that cask of Naniichuan water was being thrown around I pretended to mistake it for sake and drank it. For the curse to affect someone it has to get on their skin, not be drunk. By drinking the water, I rendered it harmless."

Ranma looked shocked. "You knew about that water?"

Happosai, looked embarrassed. "I didn't want to see my lovely Ranma-Chan turn into that kind of freak. I had to prevent it."

"You saved me?" Disregarding the part about Happosai calling her "His darling Ranma-Chan," The young Saotome wasn't sure how to feel about that. He wouldn't like to be thought of being the old man's anything, but there was a bigger question to be answered.

The little man replied, "Do find that so very hard to believe?"

The young man shook his head. "I'm sorry master, but the way you act all the time is selfish. Anybody watching you would think you don't care about anybody but yourself."

The old man looked thoughtful. "Living as long as I have, I guess it's become a habit to act that way. One tries not to make too many friends because it hurts when they die before you do."

The pigtailed martial artist was still trying to process this. "Are you saying you would think of me as a friend and not just the heir to Anything Goes?"

Happosai was indeed very much out of character this morning. He said, "Ranma, you are brave, loyal, honorable and kind. You are a young man any father would be proud to call his son (present company excepted.) I never did understand why Genma is always saying what a disgrace you are. You are dealing with a difficult situation in an admirable fashion even to working toward overcoming some of the shortcomings that your upbringing caused you."

Angrily Genma demanded, "What 'shortcomings?' He is the greatest martial artist of his generation."

The little man shook his head sadly. "This may sound strange coming from me, but even I am aware that there is more to life than martial arts. Have you looked at the grades Ranma gets in school?"

Genma was indignant. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Ranma didn't bother mentioning that his grades had improved greatly over the last few months. He didn't think his father would approve.

The elderly man reflected on what he had observed of the father and son. Genma would claim that Ranma's excellence in the Art was due solely to the father's skills as a teacher. In truth Genma was a good teacher for basics but for advanced techniques he was merely adequate. The older Saotome's problem was that he lacked patience and thus was always looking for shortcuts. The only reason Ranma had achieved the heights he had was because of his innate talent and ability to modify and improve techniques after he'd learned them. That and the many masters of they arts they had studied under in their travels.

The martial arts master shook his head sadly. "By keeping Ranma ignorant you guarantee that when or if he and Akane take over the dojo, you will be the one actually running it."

The panda man insisted, "That's a lie!"

In a dangerous tone Ranma said, "Is it? I don't think so. I've known for a long time that you were hoping to retire on my labor. This makes just as much sense as that. The only problem with your plan is that you don't know how to run a dojo either. With you in control we'd be broke and out in the street in a year or less. Think about that the next time you want to say something about how 'useless' my classes in school are."

Happosai interrupted, "As interesting as this is, we are getting off the subject. Ranma asked a question. He thought that my getting splashed with Nyaniichuan would make my cursed form an old woman like Cologne. That is not true."

He paused and said, "You have been told that Naniichuan is the Spring Drowned Man. That is correct but doesn't give all the information that you need. In fact it literally is Spring of Drowned Man, as in man - not boy. To more fully define it, that means an _adult_ man. If a girl below the age of twenty were to fall into Naniichuan her cursed form would be an adult man. If a woman over the age of twenty fell in, her cursed form would be a man of the same age. If a boy under the age of 20 fell in, his cursed form would be that of a man of 20 or just a little over."

He let them think about that for a moment. When he resumed he said, "Nyaniichuan is the Spring of Drowned _Young_ Girl. If a girl under the age of 20 fell into the spring she wouldn't get a curse. If an old woman fell into the spring she would have a young girl as her cursed form. If a young man or boy fell into Nyaniichuan his cursed form would be a girl of the same age or slightly younger, like Ranma. If an old man was splashed with Nyaniichuan water, his cursed form would be a teenaged girl."

"Whoa! What a minute!" Demanded Ranma waving his hands in an emphatic gesture. "What was that about, 'slightly younger like Ranma?'"

The old man laughed. "You mean you haven't figured out yet that your girl form is younger than your boy form?"

"Huh?"

Happosai sounded thoughtful. "I'd estimate about two years younger, maybe more. Let me see if I have the times figured right. You were 15 when you fell into the girl spring, right?"

Ranma nodded.

The old man continued, "You had your sixteenth birthday during the 3 weeks you were on the run from Shampoo while she was trying to kill you. Also right?"

Ranma nodded again. He said, "So you're saying that when I first got the curse my girl form was only 13 years old or maybe as young as 12? I don't buy it. What 12 or 13 year old girl has boobs that big?"

"I did," said Nodoka quietly.

Because she had spoken so quietly, it was difficult to make out what Nodoka had said. Ranma turned to look at his mother and asked, "What?"

Happosai turned toward Ranma's mother. "Nodoka, I'd have bet you were an 'early bloomer.' What did your figure look like when you were 13? How did it compare to Ranma's current girl form?"

The auburn haired woman blushed a little. After a moment she said, "The way Ranma's girl form looks now is pretty close to what I looked like at 13. I was close to the same height too."

Ranma took a few moments to absorb that. Finally he said, "So you're saying the reason why my girl form is so short is because it hasn't grown up as much as my guy form?"

The old man nodded. "Likely, your girl form only ages when you are in that form. I would guess that, since you look so much like your mother in your girl form, you would probably grow to be about the same height as she is."

Ranma cast a look at his mother and said, "Well, if I'm going to be stuck changing into a woman for the rest of my life, at least it's a really pretty one. I do look forward to getting taller in girl form."

He paused a moment and turned back to Happosai. "So, getting back to the subject of your problem, what you need is to have some of the Nyaniichuan water ready to pour on yourself as soon as you put on the amulet. You have to try and splash yourself before the speeded up aging kills you."

The old man nodded. "I was sort of hoping that I could have someone standing by with the bottle of cursed water to pour it on me. There is a chance that the rapid aging could start so fast that I won't be able to splash myself in time. I was hoping I could ask you to help me."

Ranma nodded. He had been expecting this. He suspected that not all of those fine words the old man had had spoken about him were sincere but instead an attempt to butter him up in preparation for this request. It wouldn't be wrong to say that Ranma had the old freak in his power right now.

While the pigtailed martial artist could take this opportunity to make the old man squirm, he didn't want to do it. It was not in his nature to take advantage of another person's weakness. He said, "I'll agree, but first I've got to ask if we could talk to the Amazons. They might have some girl water on hand. We should ask them before making a trip to China."

With a shake of his head the aged martial arts master said, "Don't bother. I already asked them. Cologne said she doesn't have any Nyaniichuan water on hand and wouldn't share it with me if she did. I confess that the Amazons have no reason to love me."

Ranma nodded. "I seem to remember Cologne telling me something about you stealing some of their treasures."

The old man nodded. "That's true. They had a storehouse of magical artifacts, probably still do. They weren't using them. The items were just sitting on shelves, gathering dust. I was trying to find a talisman or charm that would cancel or suppress my curse. In addition to such items, I did take the Nanban mirror. I tried to use it to go back in time and stop the witch putting the curse on me, but it never worked out right. I had to give up on it."

"_And never gave the mirror back_," Ranma thought. The young martial artist said thoughtfully, "Knowing how they feel about women being superior, I bet you could have gotten them to help if you had asked them the right way."

Happosai frowned. "What do you think would have been the right way?"

Ranma grinned. "When you wanted to 'borrow' their magic items you should have just told them you were born a girl and were trying to become a girl again. I'll bet they would have helped."

The old man considered that. "You could be right, but they would probably insist that I become a member of the tribe once I became a woman. Knowing them they would want me to stay in the village to have strong babies. As I recall you weren't too fond of the idea of moving to the village yourself."

The young man gave a theatrical shudder and a rueful nod. Rather than talk more on that subject he said, "Since you've already talked to the Amazons, I doubt it would do any good for me to talk to them too. They'd probably just say you had conned me into helping you and wouldn't believe anything I told them. If I did tell them about you wanting to get back to your birth gender, they'd say it was a lie."

Ranma thought about it some more. "When I left the area after the fight with Saffron, Jusenkyo valley was flooded, mixing all the springs into one. I don't know if that makes it some kind of strange mix of all kinds of curses or if the flood diluted the water from the pools so there were no curses at all."

Happosai considered that. "Floods like that are rarely permanent. Very likely the flood waters have receded and the springs are back to the way they were before. That doesn't mean there weren't some changes in the springs."

Ranma countered, "Even if everything was exactly as it had been when I got cursed, Jusenkyo might be a dangerous place for us to visit. From what you said before, it would be, 'very bad to fall in another spring.'" He did a good imitation of the Jusenkyo guide. "Besides that, the Amazons, Musk and the Phoenix tribes all know about the place. If it were a place nobody ever visited, why bother to have a guide who lives there?"

The old man had to concede the point. He said, "We need a plan."

Author's Note: That finally gets the back story established and sets the scene for what's coming up. I thought Happosai being born a girl and changed to a boy made for a semi-plausible reason why he had to absorb female ki.

I've read where people have said that "Spring of Drowned _Young_ Girl" is actually a mistranslation but I've read some good fics built around the "young" part of that. One notable story is "Destiny's Child" by Fire. I found myself toying with the idea of a dying old man who "gives up his manhood" through the use of Nyaniichuan for the sake of cheating death. The story you are looking at now is the first result. Let me know what you think.

The idea of Ranma having been born a girl and then changed to a boy has been done before. What I think is the most notable example of that is "Genma's Daughter" by Deborah Goldsmith. So far as I've seen, I don't know of anything like that being done with Happosai. I hope you didn't see this coming.

Revision Note: Spelling, grammar and punctuation corrections. I made a few changes in wording to correct awkward phrasing.


	4. Chapter 4 Games?

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 3

Games?

The Previous day at the Nekohanten

After watching the door close behind the departing Happosai, Shampoo (Speaking Mandarin) asked, "Great Grandmother, what did the old pervert want?"

Cologne looked troubled. In the same language she replied, "He asked for Nyaniichuan water. He thought I might have kept a supply of it here."

Now looking troubled herself, the purple haired girl asked, "Do you have any of the cursed waters here?"

The aged crone shook her head. "No child, I didn't bring any with me. That stuff is dangerous to keep around."

Looking slightly relieved, Shampoo next asked, "Don't the elders keep a supply of it hidden away in the village?"

The Elder nodded. "At times some of the men of the village grow tired being treated as second class citizens and elect to use the water to become women. While we only rarely refuse such a request, it is one of the reasons that we have a shortage of men. That in fact was the original reason for instituting the Kiss of Marriage. The Kiss of Death was to prevent adding Outsider women to the tribe to compete for the limited number of men."

Shampoo nodded in acknowledgement. That much was basic history that any warrior knew. She had met some women in the village who had begun life as males. While life in the village was not as harsh for men has it had been in the past, it was still better being a woman in Amazon society. To her it made perfect sense for a man to give up his masculinity to gain better treatment and a say in the running of the village.

Her curiosity now aroused, the purple haired girl asked, "Did the old pervert say what wanted the water for?"

Frowning, the Amazon Elder replied, "I'm not sure if I can believe him. He said that he is dying and that he needed the water to save his life."

"Aiyaah!" The girl exclaimed. "Is that true?"

Shaking her head, the tiny old woman said, "I don't know. I suppose it is possible. His ki was very low, dangerously so. While it would be possible for him to deliberately let his ki run low in an effort to fool me, that is a dangerous tactic to use. Even if he weren't otherwise dying, letting his ki get that low would put his life in danger. It suggests an urgency bordering on desperation."

The two women sat silently for a moment. When Cologne resumed she said, "As to what he really wants the water for I cannot say. If he truly is dying, the water could turn him into a young girl but I consider it highly unlikely that a man such as he would be willing to take that step. No, based on his past history, I would suppose it is more likely a part of some elaborate plot, probably to turn Son-in-law permanently female and maybe his sex slave as well."

"Aiyaah!" Shampoo realized Cologne was just speculating, but the possibility mentioned was alarming to think about. She didn't want something like that or maybe worse to happen to her airen. If he was to become anyone's sex slave, it would be Shampoo's an no one else's. "We must stop him!"

The old woman nodded, deep in thought. "Considering his apparent poor health, Happosai will probably try to get help with whatever it is he has planned. I wouldn't put it past him to tell Son-in-law that he has a cure and needs the cursed water to make it work."

The cat-cursed girl asked, "What should we do?"

The Elder said, "I see two possibilities. The first one is that the old fool didn't believe me when I said we don't have any of the water here. We should be prepared in case he tries to raid us here at the Nekohanten, looking for something we don't have. I think I would be the best one to guard against that."

Shampoo nodded in acknowledgement. She may have been the village champion and current best of the young generation of warriors, but she was enough of a realist to see that she was no match for Happosai. Only her great grandmother stood a chance against the old pervert.

The tiny woman continued her train of thought, "The second possibility is that he does believe me and goes to China and likely back to Jusenkyo. Information from back home says that the flood waters have receded and the springs are working again mostly as they used to. At least the pools are cursed. Some of them are not in the same places where they used to be. I think you should go to the Tendo Dojo to keep watch. If you see the old man leaving or if you see Ranma leaving with his travel and camping gear, then come back to alert me."

She continued. "The Council must also be notified. They should be prepared on the chance the old fool tries to steal from their stored stocks of the girl water. That could still be safer for him than risking getting a curse other than the one he wants. The way the springs are right now that is far more likely than getting the correct curse."

Before she left, Shampoo put the "Closed" sign in the window of the restaurant. She had the assurance that Mousse would relieve her in a few hours to allow her to eat and take a bathroom break.

The elder planned to position herself at the door to the basement. The storerooms were down there and if they did have Nyaniichuan water, that is where they would have kept it. There was only the one door that gave access to the stairs leading down to those rooms, so it was a natural place to keep valuable things.

Before taking up guard duty, the Elder had made a stop in the office to pick up the satellite phone. In the Council chambers in the village there was another phone like this one. It was the tribe's main link with the outside world.

After punching in the number she waited while it rang. A moment later she heard a gruff voice answer. "This Elder Soap, who is calling?"

"It is I, Elder Cologne."

The voice on the other end of the line paused a moment before continuing, "You weren't due to call for the regular weekly report until tomorrow. What has transpired to make you call early?"

The tiny woman in the Nekohanten reported, "The old thief, Happosai, just paid us a visit here at the restaurant in Tokyo. He was asking for Nyaniichuan water. As you know we didn't bring any cursed waters with us and I told him so. He would know we keep a supply in the village. I am calling to let you know so you may keep a higher level of vigilance in guarding the storage room."

Soap responded, "Thank you for the warning. It will likely take at least a few days for him to reach us. We will double the guard. We will also position a lookout in Jusenkyo Valley in case. We will alert the Guide there to be watchful as well."

Cologne answered, "Very good. I have set Shampoo to watching the house where the old thief currently lives. While she will likely try to follow, with the thief's age and experience, it would be like trying to follow one of us."

"Hmm…" The other elder was thoughtful. "It is a pity we don't have more people there. We could put a watch on the airports and docks. After all there are only so many ways off that island. Although I wouldn't care for our private business being made public, I wonder if there would be any benefit in notifying the Tokyo Police about the famed panty-thief trying to leave the area. _They_ could post people at the exit points."

Cologne considered that for a moment. "I don't think that would be a good idea. At best it would likely do no more than inconvenience Happosai and would put the policemen needlessly at risk. We know his two most likely targets. If we watch them we should be able to stop him."

The Elder in China said, "With one of his skills and power, it is unlikely we could either capture or kill the old thief, but we should be able to deny him his goal. Realistically that's about all we can count on."

The Elder in Tokyo added, "He may try persuasion. When he was here, asking for the water, he claimed that he was dying and that the water would save him."

Soap snorted. "Even if I believed that, why would we want to prolong that pervert's life one moment longer than the limit of his unnatural span?"

Cologne replied, "I agree. I wouldn't want to kill him unless he forced me, but I won't lift a finger to _prevent_ his death."

She could hear a laugh over the phone. Cologne voiced her other concern, "One thing troubles me. What if he seeks to cheat death by becoming a young girl?"

There was a moment of silence as Soap considered that. "That would seem very much out of character for someone like him. Still, if he were desperate enough, I suppose it is possible. We will be watching for this as well. If that is his goal then rest assured that the girl he becomes will be brought into the tribe to bear many strong daughters for us."

The older of the Elders cautioned, "There is a chance that he may talk Saotome Ranma into helping him."

"The boy who killed Saffron?" Soap queried.

"The same," confirmed Cologne.

The younger of the Elders sighed. "That would complicate matters greatly. Keep watch there and if you or Shampoo should witness Happosai's departure, let us know if he travels alone or with company. It will help us to know what preparations to make."

"We will do what we can," promised Cologne.

With that they ended the phone call. As Cologne put the satellite phone back on the desk, she worried. She couldn't shake the nagging feeling that they were missing something in this situation. Still, they were taking all the precautions that could reasonably be taken. To do more would be the actions of a paranoid.

Back in the present: Ranma was in female form and looking out the window. As she scanned with her ki senses, she reported, "Shampoo is still hiding in the big tree across the street. I guess the Old Ghoul got spooked when you asked for some of the girl water. Do you think she was telling the truth when she said she didn't have any?"

Happosai shrugged as he replied, "I think so. She's good enough that it's hard to tell if she's lying by a reading of her ki. Still, she sounded sincere."

The redhead nodded. "Shampoo's been there for just about four hours. Since they started watching, Shampoo has had one four hour watch before this one and Mouse had one. Pretty soon Mousse should be back to relieve her to go eat or take a leak or even a nap. Even with his glasses on, Mousse can't see too well, so the little fake out we have planned should work."

Akane was standing behind them. She was wearing one of Ranma's outfits of black pants and a red shirt and wearing a black wig with a pigtail. Next to her was Genma's pack. The pack had nothing in it but some blankets to give the illusion that it was fully stuffed. The girl grumbled, "I don't see why I have to be the decoy."

Ranma reasonably pointed out, "Of the people here you are the closest to the size of my guy form. With that wig, those clothes and the pack it should be good enough to fool Mousse. And you are the only other person here who is physically fit enough to run fast enough to carry off the fake out. On top of that you have the acting talent to make it believable. While Mousse is trying to follow you, the Master and I can sneak out the back."

Ranma broke off as she felt Happosai pulling on her sleeve. She looked out the window and saw that Mousse had joined Shampoo in the tree. She grinned and nodded her head. Things should start to happen soon.

As they watched, the ki trace they recognized as Shampoo leapt from the tree to the roof of the house across the street then headed off in the direction of the Nekohanten. When she could be reasonably sure Shampoo was far enough away, Ranma said, "Ok, Akane, you're up now."

The dark haired girl glared for a moment, then shouldered the pack. If she was going to do this, she would do it right.

A moment later Akane crept out the door and up to the wall. She peeked over the top of the wall as if checking to see if she was being watched. Then she said in low tones, "Alright master, I'll meet you at the train station." She vaulted over the wall and took off running down the street. She had spoken in a soft voice but knew it had been loud enough for Mousse with his sharp hearing to have heard it. She had even managed to make her voice a credible imitation of Ranma's male form.

As the girl receded down the street, Ranma was whispering, "Come on, you blind idiot. Take the bait. Take it!"

Before Akane was completely out of sight they could see Mousse jump down from the tree and start running in pursuit. Happosai shook his head. "That boy really is an idiot. I'm sure Cologne gave him an order to not follow, but to report back to her. She won't be happy when she finds out that he followed Akane."

Ranma shrugged. "She'll probably make him spend a day or more in duck form in a cage as punishment. As tough as she is with discipline, I've never known her to be deliberately cruel."

The redhead shouldered her own pack. In contrast the one Akane was wearing, this one was full. It had spare clothing, tents, bedrolls for both herself and the old man, food and other gear.

To aid in the deception Ranma was wearing a pair of Akane's jogging shorts and a blouse of Nabiki's. She quickly tucked her scarlet hair into a black beret including the pigtail. The look was like nearly any girl headed out for a hike or maybe a walk around a park. The pack was a lot bigger than you would normally see a girl her size carrying, but she carried it so easily that people would likely assume the pack was not full. Also not consistent with the image was the tiny old man riding on top of the pack. Still the way she looked was so different from Ranma's normal appearance it made a truly effective disguise.

Shrugging her shoulders to settle the pack more comfortably, Ranma wondered. If her girl form was only the equivalent of 13 years old and already this strong, what would she be able to do when she grew up some more?

Nabiki had been on the phone while all of these activities had been going on. Now the Mercenary Girl hung up the phone and told them, "The taxi will be waiting to take you to the airport. They'll be parked by the corner five blocks from here. I'm putting this on your tab, gramps."

The old man laughed. "That's Ok. I do hope you realize that this is pretty much of an all or nothing deal for me. The only thing really keeping me alive right now is the ki that Ranma is forcing into me. I'll either come back as a girl or I won't come back at all."

Nabiki frowned at that and shook her head. "I still have a hard time imagining you as a girl."

Happosai spread his hands and replied, "To be honest, I have a hard time imagining it myself. It is one thing to be told I was born a girl and that I'm really a girl inside, and something else to really feel it. I've been male for more than 300 years. All I know about being a girl is what I've learned from observing them."

Shrugging once more, Ranma put in, "So, you'll be a tomboy. You'll be in good company. Mom wants me to act ladylike when I'm in girl form, but I'm pretty sure the best I can do for her is to be a tomboy. With Akane the tomboy she is and me, you'll fit right in here." She headed out the back door and leapt over to the top of the wall. From there she leapt to the roof of the next house. The huge pack didn't inconvenience her in the least.

Ranma paused on the roof of the house next door to the Tendos. She asked, "Can you sense anyone watching?"

Happosai replied, "No, nobody."

The girl nodded. "Good! Let's get to that taxi before the driver gets tired of waiting and leaves."

With that said, the redhead bounded off over the rooftops. It was a matter of mere moments before Rannma landed lightly on the street next to the taxicab. When Ranma opened the back door the driver said, "I was told to wait for a Tendo Ranko and her grandfather. Is that you?"

Ranma agreed, "Yep, that's us."

Happosai grinned as he announced, "Yes, she's my granddaughter. Isn't she a cutie? She'll be a real heartbreaker when she gets older."

The girl tried to sound flattered as she growled, "I wish you'd stop that, gramps. You're embarrassing me."

The driver thought the girl could be a heartbreaker now, but kept his opinion to himself. He said, "Your fare has been prepaid from here to the airport. Is that pack your only luggage?"

Ranma nodded as she set the pack in the center of the back seat. Happosai took up a position on one side and Ranko sat on the other side of the pack. "Yep, this is it. We're both used to traveling light. We're going be hiking in the back country and decided that camping gear and food were more important than a lot of clothes."

The driver responded with a grunt. When he was sure his passengers were settled in their seats and the doors closed, he put the car in gear and headed out. The ride passed mostly in silence. The driver had tried to engage them in conversation but most questions were met with grunts or silence. He finally gave up on talking to his fares.

When they got to the check in counter at the airport they found that Ranma's travel documents were there, waiting for them. Ranma hadn't even known that she had a passport, but it seemed that Nabiki had provided one in the name of Tendo Ranko. While glad that Nabiki had the foresight to have the documents prepared Ranma wasn't so happy about it because it would require her to stay a girl while they traveled.

She had known that she would have to be a girl for at least part of the trip so she could infuse female ki into the old man. She was prepared for that over and above the usual accidental splashing. Now she would have to stay female on the chance they might get stopped to have their documents checked. If she accidentally got splashed with hot water she would have to change to female as quickly as possible. The water in her canteen would do that nicely.

As they walked away from the check-in counter, Happosai joked, "Cheer up, Ranma. There're worse things than being a girl. At least I'll have something nice to look at while we travel."

Ranma glared at him for a moment until a thought occurred to her. She grinned and said, "If you're going to be changing into a girl, shouldn't you be trying to enjoy looking at my guy form more?"

"Oh, good point," the old man acknowledged. "Still, you have to realize that I was a girl for only one month and have no real memory of it. It's going to be something of an adjustment."

Before they were allowed to board the plane Ranma had to empty out the pack for security. There were a few tense moments on some of the items they were bringing, but it was fairly obvious that the pack really only contained camping gear, food and clothing.

With the contents of the pack approved, Ranma was allowed to take it with her as a carry-on. She grumbled about the hassle that security had put her through, but really had been expecting something of the sort.

Eventually they were on the plane. Ranma had wanted to get a seat near the window but it would appear that was not to be. The flight had been arranged on short notice and they were taking seats of passengers who had cancelled. The end result was that Ranma didn't have the view out the window to distract her.

She would have liked to talk with Happosai, but he quickly fell asleep. With his ki deficit problems the old man probably tired easily. As soon as they landed Ranma would have to give him another ki transfusion.

There was no movie on the flight. Ranma hadn't anticipated the need of bringing something to read so she had nothing to do. She decided that she would try to follow the old Master's example and closed her eyes.

In the council chambers in the Joketsuzoku village the satellite phone let out an electronic warble. The old woman there picked up the phone and said, "This is Elder Soap. Who calls?"

"This is Elder Kho Lon. I have news. Happosai is on his way."

The younger of the Elders asked, "Thank you for the warning. What more can you tell me?"

"Not much, I'm afraid," The Elder in Japan replied. "I'm reasonably sure that Saotome Ranma is traveling with him, but that's not certain. The old pervert used a decoy. One of the people living in the house went out dressed up as young Son-in-Law and Mu Tsu followed her instead of reporting to me as he was ordered."

"Will he be punished?" Asked Soap.

"Yes," responded the older of the Elders. "He will be punished more for disobeying orders than for failing in his mission. His failure was something of a punishment in its own right."

"Oh? What happened?"

Cologne gave an amused snort. "Mu Tsu caught up to the girl who was the decoy. When he confronted her she was able to get in a lucky punch. The girl's skills are not too great, but she has a lot of raw power."

The Elder in China responded, "By that I assume you mean she hits hard."

With a chuckle the Elder in Japan replied, "Very hard. She knocked the boy out, then doused him with cold water to change him into a duck. She trussed him up with one of his own chains and brought him back here."

The tone was confused, "She brought him to you?"

Cologne responded, "She had accomplished her mission. She let Happosai and young Son-in-Law get away unobserved. I didn't bother to tell her that the only reason we set watchers on their house was to find out if the old pervert or Ranma went out. She may have delayed my notification of that, but in the end it was Miss Tendo herself who did what Mousse couldn't do."

"Very well," the younger Elder replied. "We will exercise increased vigilance."

They ended the phone call.

Sometime later Ranma was awakened when a flight attendant touched her shoulder and said, "We are on final approach and will be landing soon. Please fasten your seatbelt."

The girl shook her head in surprise and asked, "I slept through the whole flight?"

The attendant replied, "Yes, you did. You must have been very tired."

Ranma nodded to acknowledge the attendant. She had been up late the previous night and awakened early. Fatigue was natural in such a case.

She buckled the belt. Gently Ranma woke the old man and told him about the belt. He seemed disappointed that he too had missed the flight. The redhead leaned over to him and whispered, "As soon as we're out of the airport, I'm going to look for a spot to give you another ki treatment."

Happosai realized that his sleep hadn't restored any of his energy. He felt just as tired as he had when he had closed his eyes. Yes, a ki treatment sounded like a very good idea.

When they got off the plane they again had to empty out the backpack, for customs this time. Again there was no real problem as the inspectors could see that the two were carrying nothing but camping gear, clothing and food. The story they had agreed on was that Happosai was taking his granddaughter to see some of the places he had visited back when he was young. The government officials accepted the story.

Before long the two left the airport in the city of Beijing. Before heading to the train station they stopped in a park where they sat on a bench. Ranma set the pack on the ground in front of her then took the old man's hand in hers. To anyone looking it had the appearance of a child comforting a grandparent.

They sat like that for several minutes. When Ranma took her hand away she said, "Master… we may have more of a problem than we thought."

The little man had been enjoying the feeling of renewed strength and energy. Now alarmed, he asked, "What's wrong?"

The girl was frowning. "The difference wasn't big, but I could feel it. Your resistance to the ki transfer is getting worse. It's hard to say, but I'd have to guess that in two weeks to a month and I won't be able to push hard enough to get the ki into you. That's if the rate of change doesn't get any faster."

The old man got a somber look on his face. "I guess that means we won't have any time for sightseeing along the way. We have a time limit. We must get to where we need to be as fast as we can before the resistance gets too bad."

Ranma shook her head. "Somehow I just knew something like this would happen. The trip was going too smoothly."

The old man smirked and said, "Did you want it to be easy?"

The redhead grumpily replied, "It would be nice once in a while. Alright, let's get to that train station."

As they left the park Ranma noticed some policemen. Since neither she nor Happosai had done anything wrong, she tried to ignore them. One of them did look at her for a moment then his gaze moved on. Apparently the redhead was not who he was looking for.

At the train station Ranma and the Master had to produce their papers. The officer who checked looked hard at Happosai then compared the name on the papers against a notebook he had in his pocket. After a moment he handed the papers back to the travelers and waved them into the station.

As they walked toward the platform Ranma glanced back at the guard. "He was looking at you pretty good. Do the Amazons have friends in the PRC government?"

The little man gave a derisive snort. "Friends? I wouldn't say that. The government barely tolerates the Joketsuzoku, Musk and the Phoenix. About the only reason they don't send troops in to wipe out those tribes is that they stay pretty much in their own region. As long as they do that, it would cost more to destroy them than to leave them alone. Regardless of how powerful Herb or the reborn Saffron may think they are, they aren't stronger than modern weapons."

Ranma frowned. "So the police aren't looking for us?"

He shook his head. "I didn't say that either. They may be looking for us; they might not. For now I'll just have to assume that one or both of us bear a slight resemblance to someone they are looking for."

The girl glanced back at the guard then shrugged and boarded the train. A short while later they were looking out the windows of the train car as it clattered down the track. They were heading to the very end of the line. After a few stops many of the other passengers got off.

When they had some empty seats around them Ranma finally asked, "So, do you want to give me the rest of the answer to my question?"

The old man looked puzzled. "Which question do you mean?"

With an expression of exaggerated patience, the redhead said, "When you told me you could absorb ki from a woman's hand, I asked 'why the groping?' You said it was because it was easier to find unwilling victims than willing volunteers. Even if you are sneaking up on women you could still grab a hand instead of boobs or butt. So I repeat the question, 'Why the groping?'"

The little man looked sad as he seemed to study the back of the seat in front of them. Finally he said, "From what you have seen of me in the past, would you say I'm a serious person?"

Ranma frowned at the question. After a moment she replied, "Serious? Not likely. If anything you often act like an overage little kid who wants to play all the time. You've been a lot more serious lately, but I guess that finding out you could die soon would do that to you."

The aged martial arts master nodded. "Yes, that's pretty accurate description. Part of my way of not giving in to depression was making a game out everything I did, including getting the ki I needed to live."

"A game?"

The little man nodded. "That's right."

Renma frowned fiercely and tried to suppress her anger, almost trembling with the effort. "So you figured the only way you wouldn't get depressed was if you made your ki gathering _fun_. Is that right?"

The old man looked at his traveling companion with a puzzled expression. He could hear the anger in her voice and sense it in her ki. He wasn't sure he understood the reason for the intensity of it. He answered, "Yes, that's right."

In a tightly controlled voice, Ranma asked, "How much fun do you think it was for the women and girls you groped?"

Somewhat lamely, he answered, "Uh… not very much?"

Ranma fixed the old man with a glare so intense it should have caused injury. "I'm not even a woman all the time and I _hated_ it. Even with all of my speed, strength and martial arts skills I couldn't stop you from touching me there more than part of the time."

Her glare didn't lessen in the least. "I've talked to some of the girls at school and they explained to me the kinds of feelings I was having. I wouldn't admit to having girlish feelings, but secretly I had to agree that what they described matched what I was feeling pretty closely. What you were touching are places a girl normally doesn't expect anyone other than a doctor or a lover to touch. When a woman, even a part-time woman like me, is touched in those places by someone she doesn't trust, she feels violated and used."

She paused a moment. "At least with my abilities, I have _some_ chance of fighting you off. The girls who have no martial arts skills have the feeling of helplessness added to the violation. When you take a bra or panties off a woman without even removing her outer clothes it makes the helpless feeling even worse. You may think that it's harmless fun because you don't hit the women or cause a physical injury. You probably think that what you were doing doesn't hurt them. You're wrong about that!"

The old man looked stricken. "Ranma, I… I didn't know."

The redhead continued her glare. "Have you ever heard of 'emotional scars?' That's what you have been giving to those girls and women."

The look she gave him was like she might have used on something disgusting that had crawled up from the sewer. She said, "When I found you on the front walk at the Tendo dojo, I had an argument with myself. Normally I defend people, especially women, against you. I do that because of the code of honor your student, my father, drummed into me for most of my life. It is the code that says, 'It is a martial artist's duty to defend those who can't defend themselves.' Never mind that Pop's interpretation of that code is a lot more… flexible than mine, he did teach it to me."

The girl continued, "I could have just called an ambulance and left you to the care of doctors. Somehow I knew that wouldn't do the job. I think if I had, you'd probably be dead now. For now, I'm going to stay with you and see this little quest to the end. Do you know why?"

The little man shook his head, his eyes wide.

The girl settled back into her seat. "Two reasons - dead people can't learn from their mistakes. The second reason is that dead people can't do anything to make up for the harm they caused. I'll stay and keep helping you because you didn't really know what harm you were doing - You were too caught up in your _games_ to see it."

She paused for a moment and seemed to calm down a little. Finally she said, "I'm not the kind of person who would do to anyone else what you did. If we come through this little adventure with you still alive and female, I want you to do something for me. You can think of it as a partial payment for my help."

"What?"

The girl studied her traveling companion. After a moment she said, "Just a little mental exercise. If you do become a girl I want you to imagine what it would be like to have a pervert grope _you_ when you were powerless to stop him."

The old man was surprised at the intensity of the emotion he sensed in his traveling companion. It was true, he had thought what he was doing was harmless to the women he groped. Chastened, he finally replied, "I… I'll do that. I'm sorry Ranma."

The girl nodded. "You'll see it differently when you're a girl yourself. I'm not going to accept an apology from you on this until you are a girl and can tell me you understand what I'm talking about."

He nodded, "Alright."

They continued to ride in silence. The trip took them to the end of the current train line to a small town. There they changed trains. The one they changed to was older and less modern, but still well maintained. The seats were not as comfortable.

When Ranma had gotten over her anger, Happosai began talking to her. They couldn't do any sparring or katas while riding the train, but there was no reason that the whole trip had to be wasted in regard to training. Thus it was that he taught her ki techniques that could be done while sitting on the train. Some of it involved meditation.

Author's Note: As you can see, for this story I didn't want to write Happosai as being evil. Here he is a thoughtless, inconsiderate jerk whose threatened death has given him a serious wake-up call. How will this affect her attitude if she succeeds in becoming female? Stay Tuned.

Revision Notes: There are grammar, spelling and punctuation corrections from what was posted on MM. I am doing that in every chapter after this one as well. I don't see a real need to say it every time, so it would be best to assume it. Any other major changes, additions or corrections will be noted at the end like this.


	5. Chapter 5 Dodging Amazons

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 4

Dodging Amazons

Their next stop was in the middle of the night with Ranma and Happosai both asleep when they arrived. An attendant from the station shook both of them awake. Again they transferred to an older train. Once they were moving again, they went back to sleep. In the morning they changed trains yet again. While traveling they ate from the food in Ranma's pack. They ate sparingly as they didn't know how far they would need to stretch those supplies.

By the end of the following day they had gone as far as the train tracks would take them. They hitched a ride with a truck driver who was going their way. When the driver got to his destination, they found another ride after a couple hours searching and so passed another day.

The final ride they got was with a woman who was taking supplies to a tribe of Niuchezu. These were not the Joketsuzoku, but a more modern group of Amazons. In this tribe the women were still the rulers but men had a more equal status. This tribe was also more in touch with the modern world and had more amenities. Ranma found out that there was a river than ran through this valley and they used it to generate electricity.

Ranma was able to talk the Amazons at their stop into resupplying them for their trip. The friendly Amazons warned about how crazy the Joketsuzoku were with their restrictive laws. The travelers were given a warning that Jusenkyo was a dangerous place and best avoided if possible. Ranma thanked them for the well meant warnings, but refrained from mentioning that she had been to those places before. Their hosts had been able to provide them with a map of the area they were planning to visit. Some of the areas on the map were a little vague, but for the most part it was a help.

They were now on foot as there was no road that was fit for vehicles going where they needed to go. There was a path that obviously saw traffic by horses and wagons. While Ranma and her father had passed through the area while fleeing a vengeful Shampoo, it was long enough ago that it still qualified as unfamiliar territory. After all, when they had come through this area before, had not been paying that close attention to the landmarks. After the battle with Saffron the route they had taken hadn't gone this way.

When Ranma was performing her more energetic maneuvers, Happosai had to be tied to the top of the pack. Even after a ki treatment he was too weak to hang on and ran the risk of falling off and getting lost if unsecured.

It was another day before they arrived at the edge of the territory inhabited by the Joketsuzoku, the Musk and the Phoenix. The part of the border they were at now was right on the edge of Amazon territory. Now they would have to keep a low profile by moving as silently as possible and avoiding any contact with people. While Ranma felt she could probably be on more or less good terms with Prince Herb of the Musk, she was not so sure about the rest of the tribe. The Phoenix were likely to be very hostile, considering what Ranma had done to their god.

As for the Amazons in the area, they'd be better off avoiding them.

Using the map they'd been given, Ranma and her passenger walked along, just inside the border of the territory claimed by the Joketsuzoku. The valleys they were headed for were beyond this area and they had to pass through to get where they wanted. They had camped on the border of the area and now were starting out early in the morning. If they were lucky they would be able to get through Amazon lands within a single day or less. If they had been able to go straight through instead of hugging the border they would have made better time.

As they traveled they found themselves dodging patrols. Ranma frowned at this. She didn't remember there being this many warriors out in the general area when she had been through here before. Could the Amazons have been alerted to their coming? Maybe the Amazons had some means of communication other than letters and couriers.

They had made good time and were most of the way through the Amazon territory when their luck ran out. From one side of the path a voice called out in Mandarin, "Outsider, Halt!"

Ranma considered the possibility of running, but another warrior stepped onto the path in front of them and another to the other side. The redheaded girl didn't take her eyes off the warrior in front of her but could feel with ki senses the presence of someone on the path behind. Ranma and her passenger were surrounded.

Happosai climbed to the ground and Ranma dropped her pack. She looked around then in halting Mandarin, "My Mandarin very bad. Any you... speak Japanese?"

Another of the warriors stepped onto the path ahead and said in passable Japanese, "I am Ei Linah. I speak your barbarian tongue, Outsider girl. Our elders have warned us that this _man _was likely to try and enter our territory." The tone used to say the word "man" was dripping with scorn.

Raising her hands in what she hoped was a placating gesture, Ranma said, "We don't want any trouble. We wish only to travel through your lands and not to stay. We have not hunted, we have not camped. We have not damaged anything. We wish only to be allowed to pass."

Ei Linah gestured with her spear, pointing at Happosai. "That… is a thief and a pervert and is deserving of punishment. We have been ordered to seek for him and capture him if we can, kill him if we can't capture."

Now angry Ranma stated, "It is true that this man is a thief and a pervert. Very likely he does deserve punishment. It is also true that there would really be little point in punishing him now."

"Little point? What are you talking about?" The Amazon leader was confused. "He must face trial."

Ranma overrode any other protests by loudly saying, "This man is dying! If it weren't for the ki energy I've been giving him, he would be dead already."

Ei Linah looked at the little man with an expression of confusion. Obviously, her orders didn't cover this possibility. After a moment she said, "What you say may be true. Still he has committed crimes against the Joketsuzoku. We will need to take him back to the village where the council of Elders can decide his fate."

Ranma shook her head in negation. "He seeks to lay eyes on the land he has chosen to be his final resting place. I will only be able to keep him alive for a short time more. If your council is anything like other councils I've heard of they could take more time to decide than he has left to him."

From what the Outsider girl said, it seemed obvious she must be a healer of some kind. Even if the girl did seem young to be a healer, Ei Linah didn't want to disrespect someone of that vocation. However, her orders said to bring the old man back. She said, "Honored Healer, I am sorry. My orders were most specific. I am to bring the man back to face punishment. If our own healers confirm your diagnosis, I'm sure they won't keep you long."

Ranma muttered under her breath, "We don't have time for this." At normal volume she asked, "When your Elders warned you that Happosai might be visiting your part of the world, did they also mention who might be his traveling companion?"

The Amazon party leader's confused deepened. "There was some mention that there might be another man with him. We were not expecting a girl."

The redhead pulled herself to her full (small) height and proclaimed, "I am not a girl, I am a Jusenkyo cursed man. I am the one who bested Prince Herb of the Musk in combat and destroyed a mountain in the process. I am the same man who killed Saffron, the Phoenix king. I am Saotome Ranma."

She ignited her aura and let the light blast forth. The force was strong enough that it pushed each of warriors back a step and sent a ripple through the grass. A feeling of heat radiated off the glowing girl.

Her voice now amplified by ki, the girl said in booming tones, "We don't want any trouble with your people, but I am capable of handling any trouble you may offer. Do you really want to fight over whether or not a man who is already dying gets punished? Any punishment you might give him now would be nothing more than an empty gesture."

None of the warriors were ki adepts the way the elders were, but even they could feel the power radiating off the girl. Now that she was reminded of it, Ei Linah thought she could remember the story that the one who killed Saffron was in fact a Jusenkyo cursed boy whose girl form was a petite redhead.

Making a quick decision, the leader of the group asked, "Do you intend any harm to the people or lands of the Joketsuzoku?"

Ranma emphatically shook her head. "We mean no harm. We only want to peacefully pass through your lands. We had _hoped_ we could make it through without you ever knowing we had been here."

Ei Linah considered carefully. Finally she said, "Will you, Saotome Ranma, give your word that you intend no harm to our village or the people who live in it?"

The girl nodded solemnly. "On my honor as a martial artist, I swear that I intend no harm to any of the Joketsuzoku, nor do I intend harm to any of the Musk or Phoenix people either."

The Amazon commander laughed. "That is a little more than I was asking for, but I'll accept it. Will you guarantee his behavior?"

Ranma cast a look at the little man. "Knowing his character, I would normally not promise anything about him. Right now though, I don't think he has enough energy to cause any trouble. Yes, I'll give you that guarantee."

Ei Linah gestured toward the Outsider girl and said, "I believe you. Now could you stop glowing like that? You're making me and my warriors nervous."

Ranma knew the woman was just joking, but she pulled in her aura anyway. She had proved her point. At a hand signal from their commander the party of Amazons faded into the woods again.

As they headed on with their travel, Ranma could feel the ki traces of the women. She softly commented to Happosai, "They're following us."

The old man who was back on top of Ranma's pack said, "Likely they are going to tell any other groups to leave us alone. Think of it more as an escort."

Ranma ventured, "Maybe Eyeliner just wants to be sure we leave like I said."

"That too," the little man conceded.

Thanks to the delay from confronting the Amazons, it was after dark when Ranma pitched her tent. They were a short distance outside the official border of Joketsuzoku land. While tending the fire, Ranma commented, "There's still someone there. There's only one now."

Happosai said, "She's probably watching to see that we don't cross back onto their land."

Ranma frowned. "I hope they realize that I'm going to have to come back through here later on the way back."

He shrugged. "At least they are staying on their side of the border. If this succeeds, how are we going to explain you going back with another girl?"

The girl shook her head and sighed. "I guess we didn't plan this very well. If it doesn't work I'll be going back alone. I don't think they'd bother me then. If it does work I guess we'll have to work on a plan at the time."

The little man nodded. He asked, "How much farther is it?"

The redhead used the light of the campfire to study the map. "The valley you marked as the closest looks like a little more than a half a day's walk. I'd guess we should get there in the middle to late afternoon. I don't know if we'll have time to find the cave before it gets dark. Would the cave be easy to find?"

The old man shook his head. "I picked it because it was hard to find. I remember there were a lot of bushes growing in front of the entrance. From the valley floor you would never know there was a cave there."

Ranma gave the old man another ki treatment, after which they went to sleep for the night. Ranma chose not to comment on how much harder it was getting to force ki into Happosai's aura.

In the Joketsuzoku village, warrior Ei Linah was ushered into the council chamber to meet with Elder Soap. The Elder was not in the best mood. "It's late and I was just about to go to bed. What do you have to report?"

The warrior stood stiffly and in crisp tones said, "My party and I met two people near the northeast border of our territory. One of the people was a fairly small, red haired girl the other was unquestionably the thief, Happosai."

The elder's feigned disinterest evaporated instantly. "Red hair, you say? Since you are here alone, I'm guessing you didn't bring them with you. Did you speak to these people?"

The warrior bowed her head. "Yes, honored elder. The girl did all of the talking for both travelers. She said that the old man was dying and that she was escorting him to his choice of a final resting place. She said she was using her own ki to keep him alive long enough to reach that place."

The old woman looked intrigued. "Dying, you say? Hmm. Elder Kho Lon reported that the old pervert made the same claim. Did they say anything more about why they were in our territory?"

"The girl said they were just passing through with no intention of contacting us," the warrior reported. "The direction they were traveling seems to bear that out. We followed them for a while and they seemed to be deliberately trying to skirt around the outside edges of our lands."

The Elder nodded. While she anticipated the answer, the old woman felt she had to ask, "Why didn't you bring them back here?"

The warrior got a sheepish expression on her face. "The girl didn't want to come. She said she was Saotome Ranma and then raised a battle aura such as I've never seen, even from any of the Elders."

"I see," acknowledged the Elder. She had sensed the aura even in the village. Likely it was not all the power the Saotome child was capable of raising, but strong enough.

The warrior had a worried look on her face. "I'm sorry Honored Elder. Neither I nor any of my squad were strong enough to face a warrior of that power. I asked for her word that she meant no harm to us and when she gave it, I let her go."

Seeing the expression on the warrior's face, the Elder took pity on her. "You acted wisely. Young Saotome is too honorable to harm people without provocation, but if pressed he will defend himself and any who have entrusted themselves to his care."

"Was… Was that really the person who killed Saffron?" Ei Linah asked.

The Elder shook her head. "Not having met him, it's hard for me to say for sure, but it sounds like that is who you met. Besides coming back here to report in, what else did you do?"

The warrior snapped to attention again and said in crisp tones, "I assigned warrior Pom Aide to follow the travelers from a discrete distance. I figured that this way we would at least know if Saotome was keeping her word."

The elder gave a tight lipped smile. "A good choice. Pom Aide is level headed and more likely to plan her moves than rush in on impulse. I still predict she'll lose them."

The warrior demanded, "What? Why?"

Elder Soap shook her head. "Young Saotome is cleverer than he looks and he has the advantage of the old pervert to advise him. Besides that he knows an invisibility technique."

"Oh," said Ei Linah. She thought for a moment, "But if they don't see Pom Aide…"

The Elder shook her head again. "I would be very surprised if Saotome doesn't notice he's being followed. Both he and the old pervert have ki senses that are much more reliable than vision."

The warrior considered that. "This is the man that Cologne wants to bring back as Shan Pu's husband? He sounds like a dangerous man to have around."

Elder Soap let out a sigh. "There are those on the Council who share that opinion. Indeed there are some who argue in favor of simply nullifying the Kiss of Marriage. It seems a safe bet that Saotome would not take well to being forced to become a member of the tribe."

The elder looked at the floor with a sad expression. "Shan Pu has been ordered to try a simple courtship, abandoning all the more coercive methods. I fear she may have hurt her cause by her heavy-handed ways before now. It would take a minor miracle for the boy to fall in love with Shan Pu now. Some on the council think it might be best to cut our losses and bring our people back from Japan."

Ei Linah wasn't sure how to respond to that. Giving up on a man, even a girl cursed one, didn't sound like the kind of thing they should be doing. Still, if this man was as dangerous as the Elder said, maybe it was better to leave him alone. The warrior left when dismissed.

The next morning Ranma and Happosai were up and moving shortly after sunrise. Ranma glanced over her shoulder and commented, "Our shadow from yesterday is still with us." She paused for a moment and studied the ki trace. "Actually, I don't think it's the same woman but someone who was sent to relieve her."

The old man looked worriedly back. "It would be a bad idea to let her follow. She might try to interfere in my rejuvenation. She could also bring others."

The redhead let out a big sigh. "I could go back and kill her, but that's not my way."

The tiny man thought for a moment. "Have you mastered your father's invisibility technique?"

The girl knew the old man couldn't see her face from his position on the top of the pack but she smirked anyway. "Mastered it and improved on it." With no fanfare or display of any kind, the girl and the old man simply faded from view.

It was fortunate there was a beaten path to follow. It was old and looked like it hadn't been used in months, but at least it was free of grass and loose dirt that would betray their movements. Happosai quickly used the rope that looped over the top of the pack to tie himself down. When he indicated he was ready, Ranma moved into a long-striding run. The stride was calculated to cover maximum distance with minimum effort. Using this type of running stride, Ranma could run all day if need be.

In this case Ranma ran only a short distance away then leapt into a tree. From that vantage she looked back at the point where she had engaged her ki cloak. She didn't have long to wait. An Amazon warrior came onto the path and looked around. She stood and shaded her eyes from the morning sun and tried in vain to spot the travelers.

In her tree, Ranma was mouthing the words, "Please give up," over and over. She really didn't want to hurt the woman.

At that moment the woman dropped her hands to her sides and clenched them into fists as she glared around her. Ranma could see the woman's mouth move. Though she couldn't hear the woman, it was easy to guess that she was cursing. The woman turned and stomped off in the direction of the border of Joketsuzoku territory.

Happosai commented, "Well, that's that for now. I suppose it will be a while before we find out if the Amazons act smart or stubborn."

"What do you mean?" Ranma asked.

The old man explained, "She'll probably head back to the village to report that she lost us. If the Elders act smart they'll just wait for you to come back when you've finished your business. If they're stubborn they'll send a group to try and track us."

The girl nodded. "Are you secure back there?"

The little man confirmed, "Yes, I'm tied down."

"Good," acknowledged the redhead. "We're going to stay in the trees as much as we can. It should be harder for them to follow when I jump from tree to tree."

Suiting actions to words, girl began leaping along like an anime ninja. If the woman who had been following them sent others to track them, they wouldn't have much time when got to their destination. Ranma felt sure the Amazons had skilled trackers and besides there wasn't much in their direction of travel other than the valley they were headed for.

They took only the briefest of pauses for a meal at lunch and bathroom breaks.

In the Council Chambers of the Joketsuzoku Elder Soap was back after a full night's sleep. She was met by Ei Linah. Shortly Warrior Pom Aide was ushered into the room.

The warrior got down on one knee and apologized, "Elder, Squad Leader, I… am sorry. I lost them. They seemed to just vanish. I went to the spot where they disappeared, but I could find no tracks. They may have leapt into the trees, but I'm not a good enough tracker to follow them there."

The Elder sighed, "Be at ease child. You were given an impossible task and did about as well as anyone could. We will send out a party of expert trackers, but I don't hold much hope that they will have any luck. I think it might be just as effective to send a second party to just go in the same general direction as they seemed to be going."

When Ranma and Happosai got to their destination valley they found it to be totally unremarkable looking place. It was a low place in the generally mountainous region with a little used path running along the bottom. There were trees all around and lots of bushes and some vines growing on the valley sides. Small clumps of grass sprouted here and there.

The girl looked around and asked, "I don't suppose you remember where the cave is, do you?"

In a dry tone the old man said, "I haven't been back here in nearly twenty years. We're lucky that I remember which valley it is. I do remember that there were two caves in this valley and I stashed bottles of cursed water in both of them. One was on that side, the other was on the other side." He pointed.

Ranma shook her head and said in a sarcastic tone, "Oh yeah, that narrows it down a lot. I don't suppose you would know some ki sensing trick that would help me find it without going over ever millimeter of valley side?"

The old man frowned in thought before he brightened. "There just might be. Did you ever learn the Breaking Point technique?"

The girl nodded. "I know how to do the technique, but I never got the training to toughen up, so the shrapnel from the blast tears me up too much to actually use it."

"You won't need the toughness," he told her. "The technique that you use to find the weak point to blow up a rock can be used to find the empty space of a cave."

Ranma stood wide-eyed as she considered. "That… should work. I never thought of that before."

"That's why you are still the student and I'm the Master," cackled the old man.

Ranma cast an irritated look at her traveling companion but decided not to comment. The old man was dying, so she would cut him some slack. She wondered if this person would be so obnoxious when she was female.

They walked over the sloped side of the valley and Ranma extended her ki senses as if looking for a point to blow up. She was able to spot several breaking points, but nothing like the empty space she needed. She began moving along the length of the valley side to continue her probing.

About two thirds of the way along the one side and a little higher she felt something different. She wasn't sure how to describe it, but she guessed that it was the cave they were looking for. She looked up and saw an outcrop with a clump of bushes growing on it. She leapt up to the outcrop and pushed the bushes to find a concealed opening. The bushes completely screened it from view of anyone on the valley floor.

From a pocket Ranma pulled a small flashlight she had brought. With that weak light she could see what looked like a brown wine bottle lying on its side on the floor of the cave. There was some debris that made it look like animals had used the cave as a den in the past. Since there was the only the faintest trace of animal smell, Ranma concluded that it had been a few years since any animals had slept in that cave.

The cave itself went back about two meters and the ceiling was low enough that even the tiny Happosai would have to bend down to walk into it. The only way Ranma would be able to get in would be to crawl.

She turned and said, "Hey _Master_?" She loaded the title with a heavy sarcastic tone. "I found a cave and there's a bottle on the floor of it. It looks like it would be a tight fit for me to get it out. Do you feel up to going in there for it?"

"Yes!" The old man exclaimed. "I'm glad for a chance to be more than just baggage on this trip."

When the little man stood below her with his arms raised up, Ranma reached down and pulled him up. She then lifted him up and set him down in the tight space between the bushes and the cave opening. The old man got on his hands and knees and crawled into the cave. A short while later he came out gripping the neck of the bottle in his hand.

He hefted it and said, "It's still full. I didn't have a cork or other stopper, so I used beeswax to seal the bottle. It seems to have worked."

A thought occurred to the girl and she asked, "Is the water still good?

"Huh?" He looked surprised. He hadn't thought of that possibility. Carefully he inspected the wax that sealed the opening of bottle. Now that he had it in his hands he could remember this bottle. The seal was as he remembered it. It did not appear to have been tampered with.

The little man looked at the girl and said, "I checked. This is the same bottle and the seal is unbroken. It takes centuries for the magic to fade out of the cursed water, so it should still be good."

Ranma sounded nervous as she said, "If you're sure."

He tried to reassure his traveling companion by joking, "If I'm wrong, I'll be dead and you'll have a mess to clean up."

The girl gave him a sour look. "Old freak, has anyone ever told you that you have a sick sense of humor?"

With a chuckle he answered, "All the time, boy. All the time."

"I had sort of planned to do the whole thing inside the cave so we would be away from possible prying eyes. I wasn't expecting the cave to be so small." She cast a look at the sky. There were a few thin clouds, but nothing that looked like it would cause rain.

The sun was starting to dip below the rim of the valley. It had taken some time to find the cave. Before too much longer it was going to be dark.

Happosai looked at the sky and advised, "Make camp first. There's no rule that says we can't do this by firelight. I don't think the Amazons could get a party together in time to stop us. They would likely camp for the night anyway. Even so, the sooner we get this over with, the better."

By the time the tents were up and the fire merrily burning, it was full dark. Ranma had wanted to prepare supper, but Happosai wanted to do the magic first. He had pointed out that if it didn't work, Ranma wouldn't have to prepare as much food.

Happosai pulled the amulet out of his pocket and held it in his hand. Ranma then took a small knife and used it to dig the wax out of the neck of the bottle so the water would pour out. Some small chunks of was fell down inside the bottle, but they shouldn't be a problem. She nodded when she was ready.

The old man looped the leather thong over his head but kept the amulet in his hand. He explained, "The magic doesn't start until the stone touches my body. Get ready."

Ranma held the bottle over the old man's head. She tilted the bottle so the water was right at the lip, ready to pour. Happosai looked up to confirm it and pressed the stone of the amulet to his chest just above his gi. As soon as the stone made contact with his chest he shouted, "NOW!"

Author's Note: I don't normally do cliffhangers but this seemed the best place to end this chapter. I normally just write a long, continuous story and then break it into chapters when preparing it to post.

I honestly don't know how long it would take to get from Beijing to the area where Takahashi-san had placed Jusenkyo. If it is closer than I have described it, then call it literary license and please go with it for now.

Please review.


	6. Chapter 6 Transformation

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma ½ Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 5

Transformation

Ranma turned the bottle upside down and let the water gurgle out. It came out in spurts as bubbles of air rose into the bottle. She had expected to see a change and was not disappointed. The body of the little man began to grow and shift. Before long there was a scream. Happosai's voice had always been rather high for man but the character of the voice was definitely taking on feminine tones. Also heard was the sound of ripping cloth.

The redhead exclaimed, "Oh, Kami-Sami! I didn't think about your clothes."

A feminine voice shouted, "Get it off, get it off! It's strangling me."

Ranma rushed to help, saying, "Oh calm down you big baby! You just got too big for the clothes you were wearing." Mostly it was a matter finishing the tearing that had begun when the small body had changed to more normal proportions. It was perhaps fortunate that the Master's clothing had been old and worn.

When the new girl was free of the constricting garments she sat down and breathed a sigh of relief. Pulling a bit of fabric from her foot, she commented, "This is something else we didn't plan on."

Ranma also sighed. "Well, stand up. Let's have a look at you. Hopefully you won't be so big that you won't fit into one of my outfits."

Before she stood up the new girl said, "Noriko."

"What?"

She answered, "I don't want to be Happosai any more. I've been thinking about it a lot on the trip here. I'm starting a new life here. The witch and I traveled for 20 years together. She was my friend and mentor. I feel it would be a tribute to her if I could take the same name."

Ranma nodded in acknowledgement. It seemed like a good choice. Now if only the rejuvenated pervert didn't do anything to dishonor the name.

As Noriko stood, Ranma took out her flashlight and used it to illuminate the naked girl. She stood taller than Ranma's girl form, not as tall as Kasumi, but just slightly taller than Nabiki. Her hair was a soft honey blonde that fell to her shoulders in an unruly cascade. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of green. Her face was beautiful, about equal to Ranma's own female face.

Ranma moved the beam of the light down and said, "Ghah! Does Nyaniichuan give big boobs to every cursed girl form?"

Looking down at her chest, the neo-girl exclaimed, "Oh, wow! I suddenly feel this strong urge to grope myself."

"Yeah, well control yourself for a little while longer," Ranma advised. "From your height and build you should be able to wear one of my guy outfits. With that rack the shirt may be a little tight, but it's the best we've got for now. It's not like we've got a lot to choose from."

From her pack Ranma pulled out pants, a shirt, boxers and a tank top. She also pulled a spare pair of shoes. She tossed these to the other girl.

Having provided garments, the redhead requested, "So, if you want to grope yourself, please do it in your tent. I know there are girls who like to do that a lot, but I'd rather not watch."

The new girl pouted cutely. "Awe, come on, Ranma. Don't you want to help me learn about my new body?"

The redhead just looked at her traveling companion with one eyebrow raised. Finally she said, "I see. That sounds like more of that sick sense of humor I mentioned earlier. So are you permanently female now or are you going to change into a wrinkled old man with hot water?"

Turning serious with the serious question, Noriko said, "Nope, I'm permanently female. In turning me female and young the Jusenkyo curse and the sex change spell interacted and canceled each other out. I could take a hot bath and stay like this."

Ranma nodded. "So from what you told me, the curse that made you so small was attached to the sex change spell. That means it should be gone now too, right?"

When Noriko nodded, Ranma asked, "Does that mean the amulet goes back to just being a magical defense?"

Noriko frowned. "Good question. I don't know. It should, but it's possible that it was drained of its magic with all that just happened. I can't feel any magic in it now, but that doesn't prove anything. The amulet's magic could return on its own or it may need to be recharged. My own magic will take some time to adjust to the new body. My ki already feels strong."

The redhead scrutinized the other girl now and said, "Yeah, your ki seems strong for a normal person, a little low for a martial artist. I think it is building up. I don't know if it will get as strong as it did in your old body. After all you did have a long time to build up your reserves."

"Good point," the blonde conceded. Then in a thoughtful tone she said, "Maybe the transformation used some of my ki reserves to build the bigger body." Still that didn't seem likely, considering how low her ki reserves had gotten.

Ranma was studying the blonde's face in the firelight. "You know, you look closer to Kasumi's age than mine."

The blonde girl seemed to ponder that for a while before answering. "As I understand, that's how the Nyaniichuan works. Since I was 305 years old the oldest the curse could make me was 19 or 20."

In a grumpy tone the redhead groused, "So it's just me that gets turned into a kid."

Noriko said, "You're going to have to get used to looking younger than your true age. Your different forms will only age when you are manifesting that form. Basically that means your girl form will only age when you are female and your birth form will only age when you are male."

While she had heard Happosai mention it before, Ranma had not fully considered the implications. When the realization came, Ranma's eyes went wide. "Are you saying that the curse has doubled my life span?"

The blonde woman shrugged. "Yes, pretty much. That is if you don't die by violence before your full natural span."

The redhead seemed to be having trouble with this concept. "So you're saying I actually got something good out of the curse?"

Noriko asked, "Does it all have to be bad?"

In a slightly angry tone Ranma replied, "Well, they do call it a curse for a reason."

Now in a philosophical mood, the blonde said, "Like many things in life, it could be a curse or a blessing. The difference is in how you deal with it."

Ranma asked, "Is this one of those 'if life hands you lemons, make lemonade' things?" She sounded annoyed.

The former man nodded. "I suppose it is."

"How can changing into a girl and being a water magnet be a blessing?" Ranma demanded.

Noriko tilted her head in thought. "Well, I can see how the water magnet thing would be an annoyance. Being in wet clothes is not comfortable. The random timing of the changes must surely be inconvenient too and probably embarrassing at times. On the other hand when you eventually get married you will be much better able to relate to your wife."

The redhead nodded, "Because I've experienced being a woman myself?"

"Exactly."

The pigtailed girl shook her head. "I don't know. Akane always seems to think the whole girl curse thing is perverted."

The new woman said, "Uh… you do know I was joking when I spoke of groping myself, don't you?"

Ranma frowned. "And how am I supposed to know that? You're still sitting there naked, after all. And you doing that kind of stuff with your female body would seem perfectly in character for you."

Noriko looked down at her bare breasts and realized that she was, in fact, still naked. She grabbed the clothes Ranma had thrown her and stood up to put on the boxers and tank top. She hesitated to put on the other clothes. "I'm not sure if I should put the other stuff on if we're going to go to bed soon."

The younger girl advised, "Better put 'em on. If the Amazons do show up we might have to run at a moment's notice. Do you really want to run through the back country of the Chinese mountains dressed like that?"

"Good point," the taller woman conceded. The pants were a fair fit if a bit snug in the hips, but the shirt was sized for Ranma's male form. Noriko's ample bosom did strain the buttons. She unfastened the top buttons for the sake of comfort. At the same time she marveled at the concept of having cleavage, something she never before really expected to have.

Noriko did feel like giving a piece of advice to her traveling companion. "You know, after all of the problems Akane had with Kuno and the morning fights, she probably isn't the best judge of what is and isn't perverted now."

The younger girl surprised Noriko by saying, "I've sort of come to realize that. But if I'm ever going to get married to her, I'm pretty much stuck living with whatever her opinions are, including those on perversion."

The blonde woman wasn't sure why she was even getting into this, but asked, "Do you love her?"

Ranma stayed silent for a while before setting a pot on the fire to heat some water for supper. Finally she spoke again, "I used to think I loved her right after the whole thing with Saffron. I thought she loved me too, but mistrusting me, calling me a pervert and hitting me with a mallet are funny ways of showing it."

The older woman nodded. Deciding a change in subject was in order, she said, "I'm going to need to train to strengthen my new body. I'm pretty sure my ki will be as strong as before, but my muscles are still comparatively weak. I'm also feeling a little unbalanced. I'm more than twice as tall as before and top heavy with these breasts. Will you spar with me when it gets light?"

The redhead shook her head. "I'm willing, but I think we should wait on that. It might be better to get going as soon as we can in the morning after breakfast. We don't know that the Amazons plan to come after us, but it might be safest to assume they will."

"They seemed reluctant to get into a confrontation with you after they learned who you are," observed Noriko.

The younger girl shrugged. "I guess I have a reputation. They think someone with the strength to kill Saffron could destroy their village and kill everyone in it. I don't know if that will be enough to keep them at a distance. It all depends on how badly they want you. I guess it's a good thing they don't know that I'd never do something like wipe out their village."

"Yes, a good thing," the woman agreed. "Still, it would be best to avoid a confrontation. I wouldn't be much help to you until I get used to my new body and train. I can't realistically think that I would be properly able to defend myself yet. Well, I guess I could still throw Happo Dikarin."

Ranma took a cup and dipped out some of the heating water. She splashed herself, changing to male. He said, "The Amazons will be looking for a red haired girl and a little old man."

Noriko nodded. "They wouldn't be expecting a black haired teenaged boy and a…" She paused, then pulled some of her hair around to look at in the firelight. "I'm a blonde? Anyway, they wouldn't be expecting a black haired boy and a blonde haired young woman. You'd still have to change back to a girl when we get anywhere they're going to check your travel documents."

That comment caused her to stop and think for a moment. Finally she asked, "What are we going to do about travel documents for me? The picture in my passport sure doesn't match my current appearance."

The younger man sighed. "I can think of a couple possibilities. One would be to get back to Japan the way Pop and I did after we first got the curses."

Noriko looked slightly alarmed. "You don't mean to swim back, do you? I don't think this body is strong enough to swim that far."

"No," answered Ranma. "We swam to get to China from Japan. Pop couldn't swim it as a panda because the wet fur weighed him down. We took a cargo ship and worked for our passage. Pop tried to get out of any work and leave me to do it all, but the captain wouldn't allow it. I think that was the hardest I've ever seen him work." He was grinning at the memory.

The older girl laughed. "Serves him right. What was your other possibility?"

"I was thinking about that first Amazon tribe we visited to get the supplies," said the pigtailed martial artist. "They seemed pretty modern. I was sort of hoping that someone there would have a computer with a web cam. If they do, we could email a picture of your new face to Nabiki and she could get a new passport made for you. Then she could mail it to us at the village."

The blonde was surprised again. "You know how to use a computer?"

Ranma snorted in amusement. "You said it yourself, there is more to life than martial arts. Ever since the fight with Saffron I've been going at school work like it was a martial arts challenge. Nabiki's even helping."

Her expression skeptical, the older girl asked, "How much is she charging you for that?"

The boy shrugged, "She's charging me ten percent less than a night school would charge for the same lessons. After all, if she was to charge more, I could just go to the night school."

"We'd have to stay with those Amazon's until the new passport could arrive," observed Noriko. "What will we do while we wait?"

The boy shrugged. "They seem like nice enough people. They were willing to help out a girl and an old man before. Maybe they'd be more willing to help out two girls this time. I'm willing to work in exchange for a place to stay for a while."

"How will we explain the fact that you were with an old man before and now you're with a young woman?" The blonde wanted to know.

Ranma explained, "We tell them that you, Noriko, met us in this valley. The old man died here (which is sort of true) and we buried him there. We then tell them we are going back to Japan together."

The blonde nodded. "The only part of that that isn't really true is the burial and we could even say that it was true in a purely symbolic sense."

"I have a thought on that, the symbolism, I mean." Ranma said in a musing tone.

The woman looked interested. "Oh, what did you have in mind?"

The young man grinned. "Just a little ceremony in the morning before we leave. We bury what's left of your old clothes. At the same time we say goodbye to Happosai."

The older girl grinned back, "I like it! I really do think Happosai is dead and I'm a new person. When we're burying the clothes we can also bury my pipe. I find that the thought of smoking that thing now makes me feel slightly ill."

Ranma frowned as he considered that. "I'm pretty sure it's not just a male/female thing, 'cause the old ghoul smokes a pipe."

The older girl shook her head. "I can't explain it. I find I don't like the idea of drinking sake either and I used to love the stuff."

"Looks like you have more adjustments to make than you originally expected," commented Ranma.

The blonde just grunted assent as Ranma dished up the food. When the woman took a taste of the rice she looked surprised. She then took a sip of the instant soup Ranma had made and her eyes got even wider.

Ranma noticed and asked, "Is something wrong with the soup? It's a cheep instant mix. You know, one of those you just add hot water to."

The older girl was looking at the metal mug that contained her soup. "No, nothing is wrong with the soup. Quite the opposite, in fact. The soup is delicious. Even the rice tastes good. I think with the new body I must have got new taste buds. I don't think I've really tasted my food this much in a long time."

The young man nodded. "That makes sense. That's probably why the idea of smoking and drinking don't appeal to you now." He suddenly grinned. "If you think instant soup tastes good, we've got to get you back to Japan where you can have one of Kasumi's meals."

Noriko shook her head. "It would seem I just _thought_ I was tasting Kasumi's cooking. Somebody once told me that your taste buds wear out as you get older. I didn't really pay attention to it, but I guess I have proof that it's true."

In a sarcastic tone the pigtailed martial artist said, "Great, something else to look forward to when I get old."

The older girl shrugged and went back to enjoying her food. She reasoned that she should enjoy it now while it was still new. Likely in a few weeks she would get used to it and soup wouldn't seem so exceptional then.

After they ate Ranma smothered the fire under dirt. He wanted to be sure that his eyes were adapted to the dark if the Amazons decided to sneak up on them under cover of darkness. He didn't really think they would, but felt it was better to be safe than sorry.

The next morning after breakfast Ranma pulled a folding shovel out of his pack and started to dig a hole. He paused in his work to look at his traveling companion. Noriko was doing tai chi katas that placed their emphasis on balance. This was his first chance to see the transformed Happosai in the sunlight. She was worth looking at.

The impression from the previous night was borne out. She was about the same height as Ranma's male form, blonde haired and beautiful of face and figure. The body Nyaniichuan had given her looked moderately athletic but likely not nearly as fit as she would have liked. Her balance was still a little off because her performance of the katas was a little wobbly, but she seemed to be improving as he watched.

She was still wearing one of Ranma's shirts but with the top buttons undone to give room to her impressive bosom. While Noriko's breasts were actually larger than those of Ranma's girl form's, in proportion to her taller body, they were about the same as Ranma's.

Ranma suddenly realized that he had been checking out Noriko like any pretty girl and turned back to digging. Sure, she was pretty and moved well, but this was Happosai, for crying out loud!

When he judged that he had the hole deep enough, he called over to the young woman. "Hey Noriko, you want to do this ceremony now?"

The girl stopped her kata and walked over. She picked up the bundle of ripped cloth before adding it to the other spare gi she had brought. Looking at the hole, she judged that it was deep enough. She commented, "I'm not sure if I should get rid of the pipe yet. I could still use it as a weapon even if I don't smoke it. I don't much care for the smell of it, though."

Trying to consider the pros and cons of the situation, Ranma asked, "Do you actually need the pipe or do you just find it useful?"

Noriko thought a moment, "I guess I don't really need it, but it is useful."

The boy nodded, "If you don't like the smell, then you should get rid of this pipe now and pick a new one that hasn't been used later. That way you'd still have your weapon but be rid of the smell."

She nodded. "Good idea." She pulled the pipe from her pocket and set it on top of the bundle of cloth then gently set the whole thing down in the bottom of the hole. She just stared for a few moments. Finally she said, "By this action we are saying goodbye to Happosai. He will never be seen again and I'm sure few, if any, will miss him. I can confess now that he was not a nice person but he did have reasons to behave the way he did. By burying this remnant I commit myself to also bury those behaviors of his that so annoyed people. I may forget sometimes and fall back into my old ways from time to time and I request that you remind me when you see me doing that."

Ranma nodded. He then bowed his head and said, "Goodbye Old Freak. You were a serious pain in the ass but you did teach me some things. I won't miss having you grope my girl form. The jury is still out on the new girl, but I'm willing to give her a chance."

Noriko inclined her head in acknowledgement. She had been given a new life and planned to make something of it.

The two stood silently for a time with their heads bowed. Finally Ranma looked up and Noriko gave him a nod. He nodded in reply and began filling in the hole. Before long the only thing left to show where the "remains" of Happosai were buried was a patch of freshly turned soil. Ranma idly wondered what the Amazon's would think if they dug up the pipe and bits of torn clothing.

Ranma eyed the sky for a moment. There were a few light, fluffy clouds, but nothing that threatened rain. His luck couldn't run so good that it would stay that way for long. He quickly struck camp and crammed everything into his pack.

Noriko reasonably pointed out, "Now that I'm a full sized person, I could carry some of that." 

The boy shrugged to settle the pack. "Then I guess this is another area where we didn't plan ahead properly. I'd let you carry some of this, but we only have the one pack. Neither of us thought to bring an extra one."

The girl paused and chewed her lower lip for a moment. "Could… could I try to carry that pack?"

The pigtailed martial artist studied his traveling companion. She looked fit, but nowhere strong enough to carry the pack more than a step or two. While he could argue the point, a demonstration would likely be much more effective.

He took off the pack and held it so Noriko could put her arms through the straps. When she seemed to have the pack positioned properly Ranma let go of it. The blonde woman staggered but managed to stay on her feet.

"Damn!" she swore. "This thing is heavy. Do you have training weights in there?"

The boy shook his head. "Just the usual stuff. You saw all of it when we went through Customs." He pointed out, "You have a whole new body. I wouldn't expect that body to be as fit as someone who has trained for years. I'd say you're doing good to even stand up with the weight of the pack. Try walking with it."

She took a hesitant step and followed it with another. It looked like she was making an enormous effort to keep her knees from buckling. A look of frustration came to her face. Finally after a few more steps, she made a peremptory gesture and asked, "Help me get this off, please."

Ranma walked up behind her and lifted the pack enough so she could slip out of the straps. The girl rubbed a shoulder where the strap had pressed down on it. "That settles it! When we get back to Japan or maybe sooner, I'm going on an intense program of strength, flexibility and speed training. To have a body that is this weak is intolerable."

Ranma sighed. "For now just try to work with what you have. Before you can start on that program we need to get someplace where people aren't going to try and capture or kill us."

"You do have a point," she agreed.

Ranma put the pack back on and they headed out. As they went, Ranma probed ahead of them with his ki senses, looking for any people. Ranma set a brisk pace, but not so fast that Noriko couldn't keep up. What he was going for was a speed of travel that would push the new girl a little and work on building her endurance.

When they had reached about halfway through the next valley, Noriko was shocked when Ranma suddenly grabbed her and leapt into a tree. Because of her martial arts experience she didn't cry out or fight against Ranma. She figured there must be a reason for his actions. When they were in the tree she whispered, "What's going on?"

Even before he could answer she sensed the reason ahead. There was a party of Amazons coming up the trail. They didn't seem to be looking at the ground, so it seemed likely they weren't trying to track the travelers. Likely they were just going in the direction that Ranma and Happosai had last been seen traveling.

As the group of five warriors drew close to the tree where the travelers sheltered, their conversation became audible to those hiding. One of the women said, "Even if they did come this way, what would we do with them if we find them? Saotome may be a 'mere' male but he's too strong for just our little group."

Another scoffed, "We're some of the strongest of the tribe. What hope can one man have against us?"

The first speaker responded, "We're talking about the man who killed Saffron. An Elder would have a hard time fighting this man. How much better do you think you would do? Anyway, from the report we have, Saotome is traveling in his Jusenkyo cursed form."

The second warrior was still not convinced. "So? Right now she's a weak Outsider female. She's still no threat."

The leader of the group shook her head. "Whether she's a threat or not, we must follow our orders. If we do meet up with them, we are to talk to them first. We are to fight only if persuasion fails."

A third warrior asked, "Saotome said the old man was dying. What if he has already died? We can't punish a dead man."

The leader replied, "Then we ask to see his grave. We need proof of his death. If he truly is dead now, then his punishment is in the hands of the gods and not for mortals like us to concern ourselves."

There was a chorus of agreement to that as the group passed out of hearing range up the trail.

Noriko thought about asking Ranma to let go of her but she was enjoying the feeling of his strong arms holding her and his muscular body pressed against her back. She wanted to scold herself for feeling that way. She had been a woman for less than a day and already she was starting to react in a feminine way. That shouldn't be happening. Noriko had been male since she had been only a month old. She had never learned how to be a girl.

The fact that she was reacting this way raised some interesting possibilities. During the time she had been a man the only relationship she had ever had with a woman had been with Cologne. Other than hugging and kissing, there had never been anything physical to that relationship. At least she didn't think martial arts sparring counted.

She had thought the reason why no romance had ever developed with any other woman was due to Happosai's small stature and gnome-like appearance. Maybe the real reason for it was because of her own feelings. Could it be that she had been attracted to men and just buried that feeling down so deeply that she hadn't recognized it for what it was?

She wasn't sure what to think about that. On the one hand maybe it would mean that adjusting to being a girl would be a lot easier than she had thought it might be. On the other hand after three centuries as a male, a part of her strongly resented the necessity of becoming a woman. She wasn't sure what to think.

A moment later Ranma jumped to the ground and set Noriko back on her feet. He didn't notice the distracted look on her face as he said, "Well, that looks like they're just trying to search in the direction we were going. They don't seem to be looking for footprints and stuff."

Noriko frowned and said, "If they are being thorough, they might have sent a second party of trackers along. They would be following the footprints, bent grass, broken twigs and that sort of thing. Because they need to see those signs they will be traveling slower."

Ranma nodded. "It should be harder to track us when we are traveling in the trees. I know you were complaining about being baggage before, but your new body isn't strong enough yet to jump between trees. Would you object to being carried?"

"Object?" After she had just been thinking about how enjoyable it had been to be held by strong male arms? Doing a fine job of acting she said, "I guess I can put up with it if I have to. I really need to train when we get back to Japan."

Something in the girl's tone caused Ranma to look at her searchingly. Was something bothering her? She seemed oddly nervous or something about the prospect of being carried. Misinterpreting her demeanor he told her, "Don't worry about anything. I won't drop you."

"_Oh, good. He's given me an excuse for acting foolish and girlish_." The blonde said, "That's alright. I trust you."

There was something in the woman's tone that seemed… off. The pigtailed martial artist couldn't quite figure it out. Something was still bothering the girl but he was reasonably sure it wasn't a fear of being dropped. Inwardly he shrugged. He'd try to puzzle it out later. Right now they needed to get out of territory which was, if not actively hostile, could still be classified as unfriendly.

With that thought in mind, Ranma scooped up the blonde girl and leapt back into the trees. He took no particular notice that Noriko put her arms around his neck. After all, it made sense that she would want to hang on if she was nervous about being carried. It didn't seem to make a lot of sense for the girl to be nervous when she had been riding on the top of Ranma's pack as the little old man. That was another puzzle to ponder some other time.

Ranma tried to stay in the trees as much as he could. The few times there were no trees close enough he jumped down onto boulders that would not show much trace of their passage.

It was a couple hours later that Ranma again stopped in a tree. He stood on a branch with an arm around Noriko's waist to keep her from falling. It didn't occur to Ranma to wonder why the blonde was submitting to this treatment. If it had been him in girl form he would have protested that he didn't need any of that kind of help.

In a few moments a group of three Amazons appeared. They were looking carefully at the trail. Not trusting the branches and leaves of the tree to conceal him, Ranma engaged his invisibility when they got closer.

A pink haired Amazon growled, "This is useless! We've lost the trail. All we're doing now is going in the same direction as our quarry was last going."

A woman with blue hair challenged, "Are you willing to concede defeat to that male?"

"Humph!" The pinkette responded. "I'll tell you what I'm willing to concede at this point. That's that women _in general_ are superior to men _in general_. I would also be a fool if I didn't recognize the fact that there may be some rare individual men who could be superior to other men and even to general run of women. I'm not saying that an exceptional male would be superior to an exceptional female."

The blue haired one looked in surprise at her companion. "You must be feeling really frustrated if you would say something like that."

"Arrgh!" The woman ground out. "It's just that this Saotome person is sneaky and clever."

The third member of the group complained, "What I can't understand is why they're going this way in the first place. There's nothing out here. No people live here."

The first woman shrugged. "Maybe they wanted to get away from people."

The third woman nodded. It would make sense.

The first woman said, "Saotome and the old pervert would have had time to finish whatever they came to do by now. Likely they're heading back by now."

The second woman nodded. "If that's the case then the patrols in our territory will catch them."

The leader of the group was in a pessimistic mood. "Catching them doesn't necessarily mean holding them. Ei Linah's squad caught them and let them go because Saotome was too strong for them."

The blue haired woman frowned at that. She asked, "Do we even know what they came here to do? I mean, they traveled here from Japan and that is a long way to go just to tramp around in the woods. If they were trying to get Nyaniichuan water like Elder Soap said shouldn't they be going to Jusenkyo or trying to raid the storehouse in the village?"

The pink haired leader frowned back. "I know. It doesn't make any sense. In this direction there's nothing but rocks, trees and grass. There are no people, no ruins of old cities, no treasures. Until you get out of the mountains there is nothing worth bothering with."

The blue haired woman reasonably pointed out, "Well, there must be something or Saotome and the old pervert wouldn't be going this way. I can't believe they are just going this way to leave the mountains. If that is what they wanted they could have completely avoided going through our territory."

The third member of the party had blonde hair. She said in a speculating tone, "We know that the old man stole some of our treasures many years ago. It is possible that he stashed one or more of them in one of the valleys along this way. Maybe they came this way to retrieve something he left behind years ago."

The pink haired leader rounded angrily on her blonde companion and started to say, "That…" She paused and her angry posture relaxed. "Actually, that makes more sense than anything else I've heard. Come on, let's go. The trees thin out enough ahead that they'd have to go back to the ground. We may be able to pick up the trail again."

The trio headed off down the trail, not realizing how close they had come to their quarry. When they were out of sight, Ranma dropped his invisibility.

Noriko commented, "Well, they were right about one thing. We did come this way to get something that I stashed. I don't think they would call it a treasure, but it was a very valuable to me."

Ranma nodded. "It saved your life. That _would_ make it a treasure for you."

The young woman sounded thoughtful. "It did more than save my life. After more than 300 years it made me what I was originally born to be. As a man I was one of the greatest martial arts masters but I can admit now that I wasn't a very nice person. Now that I am a woman, I intend to correct that."

Ranma smiled at the woman. "I'm glad to hear that. If that's really what you want to do, I'll give you whatever help I can. When we get back I'm sure Kasumi will want to help too. I'm not too sure about Akane and Nabiki probably won't help unless you pay her."

The blonde frowned, "I'm betting that Soun and Genma won't be too helpful. I must admit to poor judgment with them. There were times when I was more than a little crazy in my training methods. They are the type to hold a grudge."

The pigtailed boy nodded. "In anything outside of the Art my Pop isn't the brightest person. I'll just have to try and make him see that his grievance was with Happosai and Noriko's a different person." He absently cracked his knuckles and got an expression his face as if the idea of "educating" his father appealed to him.

Bringing the conversation back to more immediate matters, Noriko pointed out, "Well, we do know one thing from listening to the trackers. They are still patrolling back in Joketsuzoku territory."

Ranma wondered, "Would giving back the stuff you stole get them to back off?"

The blonde woman looked sad. "It might if I still had all of it. Most of the things I took turned out to be useless for what I wanted. I either threw them out or traded them for other magic artifacts while looking for something to cancel my curse. That's how I got the Amulet of Ortiz."

The young man looked worried. "You didn't keep _anything_?"

She shrugged. "The only item of theirs I still have with me is the Nanban Mirror and it's of limited usefulness because it's broken. You'd really be taking your life in your hands if you try to use the Mirror in its current condition."

Now puzzled, Ranma asked, "Why did you keep it if it's broken?"

Noriko shook her head. "I was sort of hoping I could find a way to fix it. When the Mirror is working properly and used right, it is a powerful tool. It is just tricky to use."

The pigtailed martial artist nodded. "Since the mirror is no good to you right now, maybe you could give it to the Amazons. They might be willing to accept it as a gesture to show that you've reformed."

The blonde woman looked down at her body and started to snicker. "Re-formed? Oh, yes. I've truly re-formed."

Ranma rolled his eyes. There was that sense of humor again. "That's not how I meant it."

The young woman controlled her amusement with some effort. "I'm sorry, I couldn't help that. Well, I don't know if I'll ever be able to fix the Nanban Mirror so it wouldn't be a sacrifice to give it up."

Her hand went to the front her shirt where she rubbed at the amulet that was under the cloth. "I didn't get it from the Amazons, but I'd be willing to give them the Amulet of Ortiz as a gesture. I've gotten what I needed from it. I could see where it might be useful as a magic defense, but I'm sure I could live without it. Maybe the Amazons will accept it in place of some of the other things I took."

The black haired boy said, "We'll keep that as an option if they catch us. I think it would be preferable to violence. I'd also prefer it to trying to scare them off like I did the last time. They don't know that the only way I'd fight them is to defend if they attacked."

Noriko nodded. "For now let's just try to avoid any confrontations."

He grunted in agreement as he scooped her up in his arms again and leapt to the next tree. By mutual agreement they let Noriko take care of the ki scan of the area, while Ranma concentrated on moving them along. That freed Ranma's concentration for picking his way through the trees

Author's Note: Happosai is a woman now. You had to know I would make her beautiful. It adds to the potential complications. Ranma has noticed how good Noriko looks and Noriko likes being held in Ranma's arms. Is it just Ranma or would Noriko react that way to _any_ man?

I want to thank those readers who have added this story to their favorites and me as a favorite author. I've been looking among the listed beta readers to try and find someone to help me with some of my other stories and get them ready to post.


	7. Chapter 7 What Is This Feeling?

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 6

What is This Feeling?

The travelers stopped when they were a short way from the Joketsuzoku border late that afternoon and made camp in an isolated clearing. Previously in their travels Ranma had used ordinary dry wood from the forest for a cooking and warmth. However, he judged that this close to Joketsuzoku territory it would be better to use his small, one burner camp stove. It would not be good if smoke from a proper fire attracted Amazons to their camp.

The stove burned with a blue flame that didn't give off any visible smoke and not that much light. This allowed them to cook while the sun set. However, they didn't want to use the stove after dark because low light wasn't the same as no light, and the flame would be visible in the dark.

Having had a day to recover from her transformation, Noriko found that her ki was returning to the levels they were before when she had been Happosai. In fact her ki reserves seemed to be greater than they had been before. She speculated that this was due to she now had a female body to go along with her female soul.

Now that her ki was back to the level where it had been before, she could now use it to enhance her speed and strength again. Unfortunately, her muscles were much weaker than they had been before. If Noriko used her ki to enhance her performance too much or for too long, she could easily strain her weakened muscles. She decided to be carefulwith how she boosted her abilities for now.

She gave it some thought. If need be, Noriko could raise an impressive battle aura. It wouldn't quite come up to the level of power that Ranma could now manifest, but for a simple display, she could do enough to be intimidating. If it came to a fight she could still throw Happo Dikarin, her ki enhanced firecrackers. She could also do the ki draining move she had taught to Ms. Hinako.

That brought her to another train of thought. Teaching that technique to young Hinako had saved her life. The problem was that it made her something of a freak and a social outcast. Noriko would have to devote some time to finding a way to turn the girl to normal. It would likely be tricky to do.

If she was going to be correcting past mistakes, she should give consideration to the name of Pantyhose Taro. The joke had gone on long enough and to be honest, wasn't all that funny anymore. There was a possible problem, though. Would he even accept a new name when it came from a young blonde woman instead of a shriveled up old gnome? That was a problem to think about later.

She thought about the things she had stolen from the Amazons. While it was true that the Amazons hadn't been using the stuff, that didn't change the fact that it was theirs. Maybe now that she had a new body and a younger brain she might be able to remember what she did with all of the items she had taken. Recovering most of them would likely be hard but that was also something to think about later.

For the Nanban Mirror, she figured she would give it to Cologne when they got back to Japan. Knowing the old crone, she'd probably say it was too little, too late. Oh well, since the mirror was broken, it was mostly just a gesture anyway.

As the sun dropped below the horizon Noriko couldn't avoid a slight shiver. Without a campfire it was rather cold in the mountains of China. Unbidden, another of those girlish thoughts came to her mind. She pictured Ranma sitting next to her putting an arm around her to warm her.

Unfortunately for Noriko, Ranma wasn't receiving any telepathic messages this evening. He went to his tent and said, "With no fire for warmth we'd better get into our bedrolls."

It was with some difficulty that Noriko resisted the urge to pout. Even if she used to be an old man, she was a young woman now and she felt the strong urge to snuggle with a cute guy. She was surprised at herself for feeling that way, but decided to embrace the feeling. She was going to be a woman for the rest of her life, after all.

Still, considering how Ranma often had women throwing themselves at him, it might be a bad idea to act on those feelings. Noriko followed Ranma's suggestion and got into her bedroll. She still had to wonder why she was reacting this way after three centuries of being a man. Not just any man at that. She had been one of the most perverted men alive (or at least that was her reputation.)

As she lay in her tent she thought about that. It was true that as a man she had groped many women. She had acted like the worst kind of lecher. The thing about it was that, like she had told Ranma, she had regarded it as a game, playing a part. She had never truly felt lust for the women she groped, even if she pretended that she did. Watching scantily clad women on TV and looking at pictures of them in magazines had been for the purpose of staying in character.

At least she didn't think she felt lust for those women. She re-examined her feelings in the context of her new female body. Had she really felt no attraction to the women? Did she really get no thrill from looking at the pictures?

A thought occurred to her. She remembered the "mental exercise" that Ranma had requested of her. Since it was still fairly early and Ranma didn't seem to be in the mood to talk right now, it might be a good time to try and comply with his request.

She called up a memory of being Happosai and groping the ample assets of Ranma's female form. It was an easy memory to call upon as she had groped Ranma the most of any woman. She remembered that beyond the absorption of ki it had been fun. She had enjoyed it more than just playing a part should have allowed. Maybe the fun came from fighting past the defenses of such a strong a martial artist as Ranma.

Hmm. She decided to try and bring her imagination into play. In her mind she changed her perspective so that instead of the tiny body of Happosai, she was now imagining what it would be like for her as Noriko to fondle Ranma's big, firm breasts.

Huh? There was an odd feeling of warmth in her body, but strongest between her legs. In addition to the warmth there was a kind of tingling sensation that she felt in her own breasts. Wait a minute! Were her nipples getting stiff? She had never experienced it before but had read plenty about it. She was getting aroused while thinking of groping Ranma's girl form.

She dismissed the mental image and took a deep shuddering breath. That was… different. Apparently she had actually gained some pleasure when groping women when she was Happosai. It hadn't been truly sexual before and that was likely because her own sexuality had been so thoroughly messed up by the spell and the curse. She had found male ki to be repellant and so had tried to avoid any kind of intimate contact with men and boys. Sure she had fought and sparred with plenty of men, but that was different.

It would take more of a mental effort but she decided to try the exercise Ranma had requested. She pictured herself in her current body being groped by her own former self. It was an effort but she eventually got the feelings right. The emotional reactions were pretty much as Ranma had described them. Helplessness and violation, she shuddered as she cast the image from her mind.

After that she felt dirty, like she wanted to take a bath or shower to wash away the feelings_. Oh Ranma, I'm so sorry for subjecting you and all of those other women to that!. I didn't know what I was doing_. There was no way she would ever be able to make it up to all of the women she had ever groped as Happosai, but she would try to make it up to Ranma if he would let her.

Unbidden, a thought came to her mind. She remembered how she had felt when Ranma had held her as he leapt from tree to tree. She had felt so warm and protected. Not sure why she was doing it, she conjured up in her mind the image of herself again being fondled. However this time it was male Ranma's hands on her breasts. The feeling was very different. Again she felt the sensations of arousal. In the image in her mind she pictured Ranma's hands touching her bare breasts. It felt _really_ good.

The fantasy in her mind began to escalate in intensity. Instead of just touching and groping her breasts, the dream Ranma was massaging one of her breasts and his other hand went behind her back as he leaned in and kissed her. It was a deep passionate kiss with dueling tongues. A moment later Ranma pulled back and moved down, his tongue sticking out in preparation to lick one of her nipples.

Noriko's eyes snapped open. She was panting and found her own hands were massaging her breasts. She looked out the opening of her tent toward Ranma. Fortunately, he didn't seem to have noticed what she was doing. Somewhat reluctantly she removed her hands from her breasts.

WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT? Was she just having a sexual fantasy where Ranma was making love to her? That's sure what it seemed like.

Well! That mental exercise was certainly educational. It would seem that before, as a misplaced woman in a man's body, she was confused and didn't really know what to do with her sexuality. Now that she had a woman's body she learned that she was likely bi-sexual. She found thoughts of Ranma's female form arousing and thoughts of being touched by his male form were even more arousing.

She didn't even know if Ranma knew how to make love to a woman. From the way the boy reacted to teasing, she suspected that he didn't know. That would fit with the way Genma would have raised him. The bald idiot wanted to raise his son to be the greatest martial artist of his generation. To him that would probably have meant teaching him that sex and girls were a "distraction from the Art."

She shook her head when she considered that. It seemed the height of stupidity to not teach the boy something like that when engaging the boy to marry multiple fiancées.

Dismissing that thought from her mind she turned her thoughts back to her own sexuality. As a man she had been confused. As a woman she was apparently bi. Not only that, she felt sexually attracted to Ranma in both forms. That was unexpected. True, in female form Ranma was a hot little number and as a guy he was really a hunk.

She caught herself. What was going on here? She was doing it again. Not only was she acting girlish, she was thinking almost like a slut or at least like a horny schoolgirl. She'd been a girl for only a day.

Wait a minute! Maybe that had something to do with it. Could the fact that she was a girl for the first time in centuries be causing her hormones to go into overdrive? That had to be it! She'd have to be careful how she acted around Ranma. She'd have to exercise restraint while near him, at least until her hormones leveled out. Until then the poor boy was at risk of Noriko attempting to rape him.

Noriko couldn't stop herself from thinking that Akane had better watch out. If she didn't start being nicer to Ranma, Noriko might just take him away from her. If the boy should become the lover or even the husband of the Grand Master of Anything Goes, that would certainly qualify as "joining the schools" as the two idiot fathers kept babbling about.

Huh! Married? To a _man_? Where did that thought come from? Those hormones must really be messing with her mind. After three hundred years as a man and only one day as a girl and she was already thinking about getting married? It would be a very good idea to try and stay away from such thoughts until she had time for her hormones to reach some level of normalcy. If she had to make any kind of long term decision about it now, there was a very good chance she would choose badly.

She settled into her bedroll and tried to turn her mind to neutral thoughts. Maybe a meditation technique would purge the sexual thoughts from her mind. At least it should work long enough for her to get to sleep.

The meditation worked. She was able to calm herself enough to sleep. When she woke the next morning she couldn't clearly remember any of her dreams other than they were full of images of herself and Ranma, nude and in all sorts of interesting positions.

When Noriko got out of her tent in the morning it took a major effort to keep from blushing when she looked at Ranma. She told herself it was just the hormones and the only reason she was fantasizing about him was because he was the only guy who was close.

While he broke camp, Ranma noticed Noriko seemed oddly flustered as she went about a kata. He asked, "Is anything wrong?"

She decided to go with a partial truth. "I had some dreams that troubled me. It's nothing you need to worry about."

He looked doubtful but wasn't going to argue with her. "If you say so."

After a cold breakfast they started off through the trees. Again Ranma carried Noriko, who was able to distract herself from sexual thoughts by concentrating on scanning ahead with her ki senses.

It seemed that the Joketsuzoku were determined to catch the pair on their return trip. They had to stop in trees several times while they waited for patrols to move by on the ground. This delayed their travel so they were only two thirds of the way to the far border by the time night fell. The pair ended up spending the night in a tree.

That was a terribly uncomfortable night for the both of them. In Noriko's mind the only saving grace for this experience was that they had slept huddled together for warmth. The sensation of Ranma's firm, toned body pressed against hers inspired all manner of hentai thoughts. It was a shame that it was too cold to really act on those thoughts. Besides being too cold, they would probably have fallen out of the tree if they tried any sort of physical activity beyond sleep.

In the morning when they woke up it took them a while to work out the stiffness. However, they did receive some respite. Apparently the Amazon leaders believed they had a better chance of intercepting them on the border that led to the valleys they had come from. The patrols were lighter in the direction they wanted to go.

Thanks to that, Ranma and Noriko passed the border of Joketsuzoku territory well before midday. It was while they were still in the Joketsuzoku territory that they were caught in a rain shower. For once Ranma wasn't terribly upset. She would have had to change anyway, and they had been doing well to have avoided water splashing for as long as they had. Maybe it had something to do with staying female so long on the trip out.

When they stopped for the night they camped a good distance off from the main trail. They figured that the Joketsuzoku might send searchers on the trail. They were able to spend the night undisturbed.

Now that the Joketsuzoku were behind them, they walked along the trail at a more leisurely pace. They no longer felt the urgency of being chased. Their ki senses were not able to detect any pursuers.

It was a little before lunchtime that the two travelers reached the village of the more modern Niuchiezu. At the edge of the village they were met by a tall woman in a police uniform.

The woman bowed to them politely and said, "Greetings Miss Tendo. It would seem you have completed the business that brought you to this remote region of China. The Matriarch of our village requests that you honor her with a visit. She would like very much to talk to you."

Ranma turned a questioning look on Noriko. The former man shrugged. She didn't know what this was about, but didn't think it a good idea to refuse. Although the request was politely worded, there was the hint that the police woman could cause them trouble if they didn't comply.

The travelers were led to a modest house. Like other residences in this village, it was a house and not a hut like many in the Joketsuzoku village had been. When the policewoman knocked on the door, they were met by a polite young woman who appeared to be in her mid 20's.

Bowing, she introduced herself, "Greeting travelers. I am Jin Rei, assistant to the Matriarch. She is looking forward to talking to you. Please follow me." She led them into the living room.

The room they came to looked like the living room of an old woman. Every horizontal flat surface had doilies on them and dozens of old framed photographs. More framed photos were mounted on the walls. Some of the photographs featured the owner of the house at a younger age, while many showed people who were probably old friends and family members.

From the impression she had of the room, Ranma was grateful that this woman didn't fall into another stereotype for an old woman. There were no cats around and she breathed a small sigh of relief over that.

The owner of the house was an elderly woman. She was of short stature by which it should be understood she was only slightly shorter than Rannma's girl form. She was not a shriveled up troll-like figure the way the elders of the Joketsuzoku appeared. Ranma had met the old woman briefly on their way through the village before. The matriarch's name was Lo Shen, if she remembered correctly.

Speaking unaccented Japanese the old woman graciously offered, "Please sit and make yourselves comfortable. Would you care for tea?"

Ranma looked at Noriko who answered with a shrug. The red haired girl bowed her head politely and replied, "Thank you, tea would be appreciated." The two young women sat in comfortable chairs.

The Elder smiled and spoke as if explaining to Noriko, "Miss Tendo and I met briefly on her visit to our village a short time ago. I told her at that time my name is Matriarch Lo Shen. I ask that you pronounce it that way instead of the Japanese habit of turning it into 'Lotion.' If you say it like that that, it could be confused with Elder Lo Shun of the Joketsuzoku."

The matriarch's assistant left the room to get the tea things while the policewoman bowed and left as well, headed toward the front door. Ranma didn't doubt that the policewoman would likely stay outside near the door where she could return if called.

Ranma nodded and said, "I remember. After all, it wasn't that long ago. I must admit to a little curiosity. When I came through your pleasant little village before you didn't pay that much attention to my companion and me. I was wondering why you are so interested now."

The older woman gave an enigmatic smile. "Do you mean aside from the fact that the companion traveling with you now appears to be a different person than the one you came with before?"

Ranma glanced over at Noriko then back to Lo Shen. "Yes, aside from that."

The Matriarch smiled again. "I'm curious to hear the explanation as to why this young woman is with you now when your traveling companion before was an elderly man of unusually small stature."

The redhead launched into the prepared story. "My grandfather didn't say anything when we were here before, but he was ill, dying in fact. Some time ago he had visited this region and had found an area that he decided would be his final resting place. This was in a valley about half a day's travel beyond the lands of the Joketsuzoku."

She paused. When the Elder gave a nod to indicate she should go on, she continued. "Tendo Noriko here, is my cousin. She had agreed to meet with us at the valley. She traveled by a different route that didn't come through your village. She joined us at the valley, but too late to speak to grandfather. He passed away just as Noriko arrived. Together we buried his remains and headed back to civilization."

She continued, "While we were moving through the lands of the Joketsuzoku, Noriko suffered an accident. She lost her pack that contained all of her clothing, supplies and camping gear. She has been forced to share my supplies. Also in her pack that was lost were her travel documents."

At this point Jin Rei, the matriarch's assistant, returned with a tray, which she set on a low table in the middle of the room. The others paused in their conversation while the young woman poured tea and passed cups to the elder and her guests.

After Ranma took a sip from her cup she took a moment to look at the cup. She took another sip and said, "This is really excellent tea, thank you."

The elder chuckled lightly. "The tea you are now enjoying served is called Amazon Blend and is the main agricultural export of our village. We grow all of the leaves for it on the lands around here. Because we have limited land on which to grow our tea leaves, this blend of tea is hard to come by and fairly expensive in the outside world."

She took an appreciative sip from her own cup before setting it aside. "Thanks to the popularity of our tea, the people of our village have been able to purchase the many modern conveniences that we enjoy, and those of the Joketsuzoku don't. They tend to look down on the people of our village, saying that those conveniences have made us weak and soft."

Ranma considered that. After a moment she commented, "I notice that your police officer seemed to move in a way consistent with martial arts training. She didn't seem weak or soft to me."

The elder smiled. "In this matter we don't take offense at the words of our sister tribe. They live in more primitive conditions than we do and feel the need to speak of that as if it were a virtue. Because of the rough terrain between here and their territory, it would be difficult for them to have regular commerce with the outside world. That and the fact that they seldom leave their village is probably one of the only reasons that the government of the People's Republic allow them a warrior culture."

"Oh?" Ranma was curious.

The elder nodded. "The government is content to let the rest of the world think that the Amazons, Musk and Phoenix are nothing more than legends. As long as they stay in their own region and fight only between themselves, the government leaves them alone."

"While the best warriors of any of those tribes would be more than a match for a soldier of the PLA in a one-on-one fight, as a people they can't hope to match modern weapons. A few bombs dropped from a plane and they would die without ever seeing the faces of their attackers. Their leaders know this and mostly try to keep their warriors reigned in."

She sighed. "Even if we came from a warrior people in the past, our little village here is not a community of warriors. Most of us are farmers; only the police are trained as warriors. In addition to modern techniques, our police are trained in all of the old ways of fighting. There are not enough of them to fight a war and that is the way the government wants it. They don't object to our strange ways of letting women be in charge as long so we go along with them in other ways."

The elder took a sip of her tea to give her guests a moment to absorb her story. Then she said, "The reason why I have asked you to my home has to do with a telephone call I received."

The travelers gave her curious looks but didn't say anything. The elder felt some further explanation was in order. She said, "It is too costly to string telephone wires over the rough terrain between here and the Joketsuzoku village and they won't allow the construction of microwave relay towers. However, they have not totally disdained the use of modern technology. While they are not happy about satellites in orbit, they are willing to take advantage of them. They have a satellite telephone."

That at least explained how the Joketsuzoku had known to send out patrols to try and intercept the travelers. Ranma and Noriko didn't think they would like to hear what the elder had to say.

Ranma did have a question. "If the Joketsuzoku are as primitive as you say, how could they keep the battery on a satellite phone charged?"

"During the time Matriarch Cologne was in Japan she purchased a few items of modern technology that would fit in with their village," the Matriarch explained. "The telephone was one such item. To keep the batteries charged, she also sent a few photovoltaic solar panels.

That was a surprise. Since Lo Shen said they had acquired the technology after Cologne came to Japan, Ranma wouldn't have seen the solar panels, since they would have been installed after the last time she had visited the village

The old woman then said, "Elder Soap called from the Council chambers. She had rather fantastic to tell."

Lo Shen paused to take another sip of her tea before continuing. "She said that the God Slayer, Saotome Ranma, was traveling with Happosai, the famed thief and pervert. Those two were supposed to have come through our village and through the territory of the Joketsuzoku on their way to carry out some bizarre plot. They had no idea of the specifics of the plot, only that water from the Nyaniichuan spring was needed to carry it out."

The elder looked back and forth between the two women in her living room before continuing. "Elder Soap also said that the two travelers might have a cover story. That story went along the lines that the old pervert was dying and needed the cursed water to stay alive."

The elder frowned slightly. "I don't like the Council in Joketsuzoku village dictating to us here. Elder Soap told me that we were to to detain the travelers or at least try to stall them and to notify the Council if they came here."

She shook her head. "I may not be as old as Soap or Cologne, but I am still more than a hundred years old. Among other things, that means that I'm not an idiot. A girl, matching the description of Saotome Ranma's Jusenkyo cursed form, passed through our village, carrying a small old man who matched the description of Happosai. Even if the man was more than 300 years old, it is said that he was sustained by magic that allowed him to be quite active and vigorous. Yet the old man traveling with the girl earlier was weak and had to ride on top of the girl's pack."

The old woman now looked at Noriko. "Now the same girl is back here and her traveling companion is no longer an old man, but a girl of about the age that Nyaniichuan water would change the old man into. With what I am looking at now, I'm inclined to believe the 'cover story' was the true one."

Noriko studied the face of their hostess and came to a quick decision. She felt an instant liking for the old woman and was sure she could trust her. The blonde said, "You have guessed correctly. I _was_ Happosai, although I will claim that name no longer. Now that I have been given a new lease on life, I am taking the name Noriko as a tribute to an old friend and mentor."

Ranma interrupted, "Are you sure you want to tell her that?"

The blonde gave an affirmative movement of her head. "You don't get to be as old as I am without being able to get a feeling for people. I feel certain we can trust Lo Shen."

The Elder smiled. "I thank you for the trust you place in me. I suspect we have much to discuss. If it agreeable to you I will ask Jin Rei, my assistant, to prepare lunch for all of us."

Ranma was feeling hungry and readily agreed. Noriko did so as well.

Apparently the young woman who took care of the Elder had anticipated the request because she had already prepared food for the guests as well as her employer. Shortly plates were brought in for each of the people in the living room.

Between bites Noriko related the tale of the Cruel Man and how Happosai came to be as he was. She also related the story of how his ability to absorb female ki finally began to desert him after centuries of life. She told of how she had come into possession of the Amulet of Ortiz and the desperate travel though China to get to the stashed bottle of Nyaniichuan water before Happosai's condition deteriorated to the point where Ranma couldn't sustain him with her ki any more.

Lo Shen leaned back in her chair as she considered what she had heard. By the time Noriko had ended her tale, they had all finished their meal and Jin Rei had cleared the dishes. The Elder shook her head. "Quite a story. Yet I have the strong feeling that it is true even if it seems utterly fantastic. That the lecher, pervert and panty thief Happosai was born a girl sounds impossible. Still, I can sense that you believe it."

The elder studied Noriko for a time. Finally she said, "I am probably not as good at this sort of thing as elders like Kho Lon and Soap, but I have a pretty strong sense that you truly have a female spirit in your female body. I sense that you are comfortable with your self in a way that a man's spirit would not be. I can sense that young Ranma is still uncomfortable with her female body, but perhaps becoming less so over time. Am I right?"

Ranma shrugged. "I guess I'm more comfortable than I was. If I'm going to be stuck changing for the rest of my life, I'm going to _have_ to get used to it. To be honest, changing into a girl isn't as terrible to me as it was at the start. You can bet I'll never tell my Pop about that, though. I still really hate constantly getting splashed with water and I hate being in wet clothes."

The elder nodded with a sympathetic expression on her face. "I can well understand that. It might interest you to know that I have heard that there is magic that can change the trigger for human form Jusenkyo transformations from water to will power."

Ranma sat up in her chair. "Will power as a trigger to the change? I've never heard of that before?"

The Elder nodded. "Understand that I don't know this magic myself, but I have heard that it exists. But you must understand that it is not a cure."

"Why not?" A puzzled redhead asked. "If the transformation is controlled by will power, why would anyone ever will such a change?"

"I wondered that as well," confirmed the Elder. "It was explained to me this way. While the curse is not a living thing it can act as if it were. If it decides too much time has passed since the last time you have been in cursed form, it will do what it can to trigger the change. When the trigger is water it will magically attract water, even to causing it to rain out of a clear sky or making water flow uphill."

The aquatransexual gave a rueful chuckle. "I wondered about that. So how is it different when the trigger is will power?"

The old woman replied, "When the curse decides that too much time has passed since you were in cursed form it will wait until you are distracted or sleeping and transform you. You could be daydreaming or your mind wandering in some other manner, but that is enough for the curse to work the transformation."

The redhead frowned. "That sounds like it might actually be worse. At least it can be possible to dodge splashes or use an umbrella to stay dry in a rain shower. To avoid your mind wandering would need really strict mental discipline. It would take me some time to accomplish that."

The Elder nodded. "I would be willing to bet that by the time you could learn that level of mental control, you would be sufficiently accustomed to the change that you would no longer care."

Noriko chimed in, "You were complaining because your girl form is shorter than your male form. You now know that's because this form is the equivalent of 13 years old while your male form is 17. Outside of magic to age your female form, the only way for your girl form to get taller is for you to spend more time as a girl. On top of that, if you spend more time that way, you'll get used to it so it will no longer seem so terrible to you."

Ranma turned to Noriko and asked, "Do you know magic that could age my girl form?"

"No, Ranma," the blonde replied. "I don't know such magic. Even if I did I would not want to take any years of your life away from you. Likely, you'll just have to resign yourself to spending more time in your female form."

Lo Shen spoke again, "I was told that the way to avoid transforming at random moments of inattention when the trigger is will power is to simply schedule times when you are in your alternate form. An example would be to sleep while in female form. That would decrease the waking time you would need to spend that way. If you work it right you can avoid transforming when you are not prepared for it. Indeed, doing that in the past would have reduced the number of water accidents you suffered."

In a wistful tone Ranma asked, "I wish I had known about that before. A lot of the accidental changes happen at really embarrassing times."

Nodding, the Elder responded, "If you work the scheduling of your girl time right, and with will power as the trigger, you shouldn't accidentally transform."

Ranma frowned. "That sounds good. But if you don't know how to work the magic, why do you bring it up?"

The older woman explained, "I can't work the magic myself, but I know the name of a sorceress in Japan who can. I don't have an address for her, but I do know what city she lives in."

"That sounds great," enthused Ranma. With a name and city, Nabiki would surely be able to find her.

"When we get back, I'll help you find her," promised Noriko.

Her manner sobering, Ranma asked, "Could I ask you something? If the elders of the Joketsuzoku are keeping their warriors reigned in, why was Shamp... I mean warrior Shan Pu allowed to leave the village and chase me to enforce the Kiss of Death?"

Lo Shen considered that for a moment before answering. "From what I know of the girl, she is very headstrong and stubborn. She likely didn't ask for permission before beginning her pursuit. If she had been caught, the Elders of the tribe would have declared her a rogue warrior and left her to the mercy of local law enforcement."

"Ok," the redhead said. She could understand that. It was really rough on Shampoo, but probably a practical consideration for the Elders.

"I was wondering about something else," the young martial artist said.

"How can I help you?" Lo Shen responded.

"Does anyone in the village have a computer with a webcam?" Ranma wanted to know.

The older woman looked surprised at the request. "My granddaughter, Po Shen, has a computer that is equipped like that. Why would you need it?"

Ranma explained, "Well, you can understand why Noriko's old passport won't work for her now. I was thinking that we could fix that if we could email a picture of what she looks like now to a girl we know that can help to create a new passport with her current appearance. She could then mail it to us here. Once we have that we can go back to Beijing and book a flight back to Tokyo."

After thinking for a moment the elder nodded. "I could see where that might be preferable to you being smuggled out of the country."

Casting a speculative look at the blonde, the elder said, "Miss Noriko, you said that you are the Grand Master of your own martial arts style, is that correct?"

"Yes," Noriko confirmed. "Grand Master of the founding school of Anything Goes Martial Arts, also know as the School of Indiscriminate Grappling. I tend to prefer the first name, because some people get the wrong idea about what is meant by the second name."

"Good!" The elder said, "I know how you can earn your room and board while you wait for your documents to arrive in the mail."

Noriko quirked an inquiring eyebrow.

"You can give our police officers advanced training in martial arts," Lo Shen explained.

The blonde protested, "We wouldn't be here long enough to give anyone a complete course of training."

The elder wouldn't be put off. "True, but in the time you will be here you can teach them basic techniques they can practice after you leave."

The former man considered that. "I suppose that would work." It had been a very long time since she had taught a class. It might be kind of fun.

Ranma chose that moment to ask, "What will you want me to do to pay for the bed I'll sleep in and the food I'll eat?"

Lo Shen tapped a finger on her chin for a moment. Finally she said, "I was watching your face while Noriko was telling of your journey. Something in your expression has given me an idea. Tell me, how did you react when Ei Linah addressed you as 'honored healer'?"

"Huh?" The redheaded girl was confused. She didn't know what that had to do with anything. Still she wanted to give an honest answer. She said, "Actually I kind of liked it."

The Elder nodded in a thoughtful manner. "You do realize that she called you that because the way you were caring for Happosai was the sort of thing one of their own healers would do?"

The girl considered that. "I guess so. I didn't really think about it like that."

The old woman cast a measuring gaze on the redhead. Finally she asked, "Tell me child, have you ever considered doing anything with your life other than martial arts?"

Ranma was surprised at the question. "It's all I've ever known. My father took me away from my mother at the age of five and spent the next ten years training me in martial arts. I've become one of the best martial artists of my generation, maybe the very best. There was a cost to that, though."

"Oh?" The elder asked, "Tell me more about it."

The young boy who was currently female gave a condensed version of the story of the training trip and some of the insane training. When she was finished, the elder shook her head. "Your father sounds like a fool. You may have emerged from the training a skilled martial artist, but it sounds as if it was only because of a combination of your high intelligence, native skill and luck. The training techniques you describe could have crippled or killed you, and most likely have left emotional scars."

At Ranma's answering nod, the elder inquired, "Did your father even ask if you wanted to be a martial artist?"

Rather than give a snap answer, Ranma thought about it for several moments. Finally she said, "Now that you mention it, I don't think he ever did. He always just sort of assumed that it was what I wanted. After being repeatedly told that I was going to be the best, that's what I thought I wanted too."

Her manner extremely serious, the Elder said, "You are young enough that you could still choose a different path. I want you to think carefully about this. If you were free to choose your own way, what would you like to do instead of, or in addition to martial arts?"

"In addition to?" That was an interesting way to put it. Suddenly Ranma thought about Dr. Tofu. There was a multitalented man. He was a doctor, a chiropractor, expert on traditional and alternative medicine and skilled martial artist as well.

Ranma replied, "Back home there is this doctor I know. He's really smart and knows medicine and martial arts. I'd kind of like to be like him. (Well, other than acting like a lovesick idiot when this one woman come by.) I don't know if I'm smart enough for that, though."

Noriko broke in, "Don't sell yourself short, Ranma. I happen to know you can learn martial arts techniques incredibly fast. Sometimes you can learn them just by seeing them done. When Ryoga attacked you with the Shi Shi Hokodan you created the Moku Takabish, your own variation. If you're smart enough to do that, you are smart enough to learn medicine. You just have to get more serious about your schooling."

"I don't know…" Ranma trailed off.

Lo Shen nodded. "Unlike our more primitive sister tribe, we don't just have a healer here. We have a doctor who is has a medical degree and is licensed and certified."

She continued, "However, there are times when Dr. Rin Se complains that she is overworked. She has asked me to find her an apprentice to work with her and learn the basics of medicine and so prepare to attend university. I've already found a young man who seems to have the aptitude and interest. He has already started to work as Rin Se's assistant and it might be a good idea for you to help during the time you are staying here."

Ranma thought about that. "I'm still going to need to spend at least some time training in martial arts. I can't let my skills get rusty."

"I don't think that will be a problem," responded the Elder.

The redhead paused in thought. "At most we're going to be staying here two or three weeks. How much medicine am I going to learn in that time?"

"Not much," conceded Lo Shen. "What you should learn in that time is if you really like the work and if you have an aptitude for it. When you get back home you can decide if you want to pursue it further."

The aquatransexual nodded. "When you put it that way, I guess it's worth a try. I'll do it."

Author's Note: Hormones may or may not have been what got Noriko to start looking at Ranma as boyfriend material. (It's just her theory, after all). Will she keep doing it? Stay tuned.

Ranma's interest in medicine came about sort of as a whim. I just wrote in Ei Linah calling Ranma "honored healer" but that made me wonder if that could be Ranma's true vocation. I decided that I was going to run with it.

I would really like some feedback on this chapter. This is the one that I mention in my summary as giving this an "M" rating. If you readers feel the scene fantasized by Noriko is tame enough to get by with a "T" rating, then I will change it. I can promise that is the most strongly lime flavored scene you will find in the story. I have no plans to put in anything more explicit in any later chapters.


	8. Chapter 8 Email from Home

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 7

E-Mail from Home

At that moment there was the sound of someone coming in the front door. A voice called out, "Grandma, I'm home." A moment later a woman who appeared to be in her mid 20's stood in the door of the living room. She was of medium height and had dark blue hair. "Oh, we have guests."

The newcomer's gaze lingered on Ranma for a moment. "Grandma, are these…?"

Lo Shen smiled. "Yes, granddaughter. These are the ones Elder Soap called and told us about."

Po Shen looked at the blonde. She said, "I thought we were expecting the redhead and a little old man."

In an amused tone the Elder explained, "This lovely young woman is what you get when that 'old man' comes in contact with water from the Nyaniichuan."

The young woman looked down at her own chest and the slightly below average sized breasts there. Then she rather pointedly looked at Noriko's much larger bosom and sighed. "I know the magic water would probably not do anything to me, but… Wow!"

The Elder was openly laughing now. She said, "You know as well as I do that it doesn't work that way. She has that impressive bosom not because of the magic but because that is how she would be if she had grown up as a girl. In her case I won't say 'if she'd been born a girl' because I've been told she was and it was only magic that made her a man in the first place."

Po Shen looked shocked. "Wait! She was born a girl and someone used magic to turn her into that little man?"

The grandmother nodded and said, "I'll tell you the long version of the story later. Noriko's already told it to me once today and is probably getting tired of the telling."

The blue haired woman looked at Ranma. "And you're really a boy who is cursed to change into a girl?"

The redhead nodded in response. The woman looked at her own chest again then at Ranma's. "Humph! Some curse. I'll bet boys at your home are panting at your door wanting to get closer to you."

Ranma wasn't sure how to react to that. Finally she said, "Hey, I don't encourage them or anything. I keep telling them I'm really a guy. I can't help it if they're always trying to get dates with me."

The young woman shook her head with a sigh, "What a waste of a gorgeous body and beautiful face."

The older woman smiled and then paused with her eyes wide. "Oh my, where are my manners. Ladies, let me introduce you to my granddaughter, Po Shen."

The blue haired woman bowed.

The Elder continued, "Po dear, the red haired girl is Saotome Ranma, as you guessed, but while she is here you must call her Ranko, as that is the alias she is traveling under." Ranma gave a seated bow that was acknowledged by the standing woman.

The old woman turned to point at Noriko. "This woman with the blonde hair is the former ancient pervert, Happosai. She is currently going by the name of Tendo Noriko and is telling people that Ranko is her cousin."

Po Shen bowed. "It is a pleasure to meet you both. Although I'll have to say, other than being pretty, you two don't have much of a family resemblance."

Both Ranma and Noriko shrugged.

Lo Shen grinned. "Ranko and Noriko will be staying with us for a little while. I thought we could put them in the guest bedroom."

"Oh?" The blue haired woman asked, "What are you planning, Grandma?"

"First, Ranko will need to borrow your computer," The older woman said.

"Eh? Why would she need my computer?" The young woman was confused.

The Elder explained, "Noriko's travel documents are for an old man. By using your computer, Ranko can use your webcam and email to contact a friend back in Japan to create a new passport and other documents. The Japanese friend can then mail those documents to her here so Noriko can legally leave the country."

The granddaughter looked back and forth between the visitors. She suddenly grinned and said, "Oh, I get it. Hmmm… I like it. And by doing that we get to tweak the collective noses of the Joketsuzoku at the same time."

The Elder's smile was quite broad now. "That was my thought also. But beyond that, I really want to help these people. Ranko especially has suffered from the actions of the Joketsuzoku. I am hoping to prove to her that not all of the Niuchiezu are selfish manipulators."

Somewhat sobered by her grandmother's mild scolding, Po Shen responded, "Are you done with them for now?"

"Yes, dear."

The blue haired woman nodded before she gestured to the guests. "Ok, you two, come with me."

Ranma and Noriko got up and began to follow their hostess to the stairs. While they were going, Ranma asked, "Did I understand your grandmother to say she's having us stay in the same bedroom?"

"That's right," confirmed the young woman. "It shouldn't be a problem. After all you're really a guy and she used to be a man and you're both girls right now. Besides that you were traveling together and camping."

The redhead protested, "But we were sleeping in separate tents."

The blue haired woman shrugged, "And here you'll be sleeping in separate beds. I don't see that it should be a problem."

Noriko pointed out, "You were a part time girl sharing a room with your father."

The aquatransexual directed a glare at the blonde. "You'd better not try anything perverted."

The blonde waved her hands in the air. "I'm a girl now. I wouldn't do anything like that anymore." She thought to herself, "_At least I wouldn't without your permission_." Trying to re-direct the accusation she asked, "And what about you?"

"What _about_ me?" Ranma demanded. After all, in spite of Akane's accusations to the contrary, she had never done anything perverted with any of her other fiancées.

"You aren't permanently a girl," Noriko pointed out. "You could turn into a boy and do something perverted to me. While I'm not Akane and I don't automatically believe you to be the worst pervert on the planet, the potential is there."

"Oh, that's great, coming from you," was Ranma's hot rejoinder. "I'm not the one with the reputation of being the most perverted man in Japan, or maybe even the world. And while we're on the subject, Akane never said I was the most perverted. She just says that all boys are perverted and lumps me in with them."

Po Shen shook her head and stepped between the arguing girls. In an effort to calm things she said, "Alright, that's enough you two! I can see how this could be a problem. I think I have something that could help in this. Come on."

They were now in a hall at the top of the stairs. She pointed down the hall to a door and said, "That's the guest room. You can drop your pack in there. Since you first came here with just Ranko's pack, I'm sure we can scavenge up another pack for Noriko to use. Condi Xionur's sewing class can whip up some clothing that would fit you better than that boy's outfit of Ranko's."

Noriko protested, "You don't have to go to all that trouble for us. I can get some better clothing when we get back to Japan. I sure I could just borrow something for while we are staying here."

The blue haired woman laughed. "We don't get the chance to pull one over on the Joketsuzoku all that often. When they find out that we had you and let you go they will be really angry and there's _nothing_ they can do about it. For that, it will be worth some food and clothing. Besides, I'm sure grandma is giving you both work to do while you stay."

The blonde nodded, "That's true."

The young woman began to rummage in a hall closet. After a moment she pulled out a pale blue sheet. "This should do nicely."

Ranma walked down the hall and went into the guest bedroom. It was furnished with two western style beds with two chests of drawers. There was a desk and a wardrobe and that completed the furnishings. The beds were on opposite sides of the room. However, the room was not very large so the distance between the beds was not great. Well, beggars can't be choosers Ranma supposed.

She went back to the open door of Po Shen's room. The room was about the same size as the guest bedroom, but because there was only one bed, chest of drawers and wardrobe, it seemed more spacious.

On the desk there was a desktop computer set up. It was a nice unit with an LCD monitor. A ball shaped webcam was attached to the top of the monitor.

While Ranma was in the guest room, Po Shen had started rummaging in a drawer. There was a slight clatter to be heard as she pushed things around. "Junk drawer", she explained. "I keep all sorts of odds and ends in here."

After a few moments she exclaimed, "Here it is," and pulled something out. She held out her closed hand to Ranma who opened her hand. The older woman dropped a ring into her hand.

Upon examination it appeared to be a simple circle of some polished metal. It wasn't gold and didn't appear to be silver. There was an odd pattern engraved on it, but the ring was otherwise quite plain. "What's this?" Ranma asked.

"Um? How to explain it?" Po Shen mused.

After a while she said, "It is written into the laws of the Joketsuzoku that every man in the tribe has the right to give up his masculinity and use Nyaniichuan water to become female. That was part of how they could get away with the way they treat their men. You could call it a carrot they dangle in front of the men. It's their way of saying, 'If you don't like the way you're treated, you can become a woman and be one of those in control instead of a servant.' Personally I think it's one of their more stupid laws."

"Why is that?" Ranma wanted to know.

The older woman snorted. "It meant they had a shortage of available men. It was that shortage that caused them to institute the Kisses of Death and Marriage. Through the Kiss of Marriage they could bring strong men into the tribe. I tend to think it's legalized kidnapping."

A thought occurred to Ranma. "I'm curious. From having the Kiss of Death done on me I know what is supposed to happen to an Outsider girl who beats an Amazon warrior. What's supposed to happen to the girls who fight warriors and lose?"

Po Shen laughed. "If she survives, the Outsider girl who loses a fight with a warrior has her wounds treated and is given hospitality until she's fit to travel. Then she is sent on her way with the warning, 'Don't come back or you will be killed.'"

"Huh?" Ranma couldn't understand the logic there. "Then why can't they do the same for the Outsider girl that wins. What's the idea of 'chase her to the ends of the Earth and kill'? Makes it sound like a 'sore loser' law to me."

The blue haired woman shrugged. "I'm just telling the reason for the law, I'm not defending it."

The redhead held up the ring between thumb and forefinger. "And this?"

"At the time (about 400 years ago) the Amazons and Musk weren't on speaking terms," said Po Shen. "The Amazons couldn't ask to borrow the locking ladle so they had to come up with a substitute that would keep the men who changed in their female forms. Since they didn't know if later generations would keep the knowledge of how to make more, they created 500 of the rings."

The red haired girl prompted, "So if I put on this ring…"

"You get locked in female form," finished Po Shen. "The beauty of it is that the lock lasts only as long as you wear the ring. Take it off and you're back the way you are now. There's no need for any 'unlocking' magic."

Ranma looked dubious. "I don't know. I haven't had the best luck with things that lock the curse."

The older woman's expression turned stern. "In the interest of keeping the peace in this house and to assure that no inappropriate behavior takes place during your stay, I'm going to make your wearing of that ring my condition for helping you. Your worki in the clinic is Grandma's condition to let you stay; this is mine. If you've been locked before, you know it's not really that bad. If you need to, you can unlock just by taking off the ring. Just don't do that while you're in the house."

Noriko tried to keep her feelings from showing in her expression. How naive was this woman? Sure, Ranma and Noriko both being female would prevent any male female sexual intercourse from happening, but what about lesbian sex? True, she didn't plan on starting anything until she had a better idea about how Ranma felt about such things, and certainly not without permission, but Po Shen wouldn't know that.

Well, Po Shen was right about one thing. Ranma had been locked before and she'd lived through it. She slipped the ring on to the ring finger of her right hand.

She just stood for a moment as if waiting for something to happen. Finally she said, "I don't feel any different."

The blue haired woman shook her head. "Not all magic is flashy or causes noticeable changes. The only difference in you now is that the curse is inactive. While you wear the ring nothing will change you to male, not hot water or will power if you've had the trigger changed."

Noriko pushed down the urge to laugh at this. She knew that Ranma was too honorable as well as too shy to use the ring to sneak into the women's side of public baths and hot springs for the purpose of peeping on nude women. She could imagine the boy doing that if he was more like his father. That brought a sad thought about how disappointed she was in Genma.

Curious, Ranma asked, "If the ring is something the Joketsuzoku use, how did you come by it?"

Po Shen smirked. "This village was founded by members of the Joketsuzoku who left the tribe to get away from their restrictive laws and customs. More than a few of those were Nyaniichuan cursed men who were locked as female. Some stayed women when they got here but many took off their locking rings. As things stand now I don't think there is anyone who uses their locking rings now, but every family here has at least one of the old rings and some have more."

She turned to her desk and turned on the computer. After booting it up, she activated the webcam and aimed it. She played with the camera until she had pointing where she wanted then stood up.

The blue haired woman positioned a pair of lamps to the sides of the room and had Noriko stand in front of the computer while adjusting the angle of the camera. The image captured by the camera was displayed in a window on the computer monitor screen.

When she had everything lined up the way she wanted, she pulled the desk chair out and handed it to Ranma. She said, "Set the chair behind Noriko. To make this look more like a passport photo, I'm going to want you to stand on the chair and hold the sheet to make a plain backdrop for her."

Ranma nodded and got on the chair. She held up the sheet. She couldn't see what Po Shen was doing but could hear the comments.

"Stand up straight," Po ordered. When Noriko complied, she was ordered, "Turn just a little to the left. That's good."

After a moment the older woman said, "I think the shadows won't be as bad if you are closer to the sheet. Step back so you are almost touching it."

Things continued like that for a while until Ranma asked, "How much longer is this going to take? I'm getting tired of holding this sheet."

"Not much longer," Po promised. "I've already got one picture in the computer. I just want to get at least one more."

The redhead resisted the urge to grumble out loud but couldn't help thinking uncomplimentary thoughts. They weren't trying to create great art here, just get a passport photo.

After one last image was captured, the Po Shen said, "That's good, Ranko. You can get down from the chair now. We've got the pictures we need for the travel documents."

The red haired martial artist didn't say it out loud, but thought, "_It's about time_!"

When Ranma handed the folded sheet back to their hostess, the blue haired woman said, "I just want to get one more picture for you to show your friends back home. Both of you stand over by the door so I can get a shot with the two of you."

They stood further back so Po Shen could get more than just their faces in the picture. When they were in what they felt was a good pose when their hostess took a moment to reposition the lamps to get better light on them. When she was satisfied she called out, "Smile!"

When she said, "Got it!" the two guests came forward to look at the screen. They decided that it was a good picture. Ranma had a silly smile and was flashing a "V" sign with her fingers, but it would do.

Po Shen asked, "You do know how to use a computer, don't you?"

Ranma nodded. The older woman pointed to the screen. "Alright. These are the filenames of the picture files so you can email them. I've saved them in this directory. I've already started up my internet browser so you should be able to access your email account. To give you some privacy I'm going to go downstairs and see if Jin Rei needs any help making supper. Since she'll be cooking for more people than usual, I think she might appreciate a helping hand."

When the blue haired woman had shut the door behind her, Ranma said in a musing tone, "Jin Rei? I guess not all Amazons name themselves after beauty and hair care products."

Noriko pointed out, "You already knew that. Remember Lin Lin and Ran Ran? Don't forget about Ling Ling and Lung Lung."

Ranma's expression turned sour. "Right." She tapped some keys and shortly she was logging on to .

Looking over Ranma's shoulder, Noriko said, "Undomesticated Equine?"

The redhead shrugged. "That's the alias I use for my email address. My name does mean 'Wild Horse,' right?"

Ranma looked over her mailbox. She deleted three items without reading them. When Noriko asked, the younger girl explained, "That's just spam. You know, advertising?"

She tapped the screen. "This one is from Nabiki."

The blonde read the alias of "frozen monarch." She couldn't suppress a chuckle. "So even on email she's the Ice Queen?"

"Yep," was Ranma's reply. "Just a minute. She encrypted the mail, so I'm going to have to decrypt it." She typed in a command to apply her decryption key of "orchid child." That key had been derived from an alternate spelling of Ranko.

"Hmm, she just sent this yesterday," commented Ranma. "Since this involves you, I think you should read it too."

Over Ranma's shoulder, Noriko read:

"To: Undomesticated Equine

From: Frozen Monarch

Subject: Your trip

You and your 'friend' left in such a rush that I'm pretty sure you didn't have time to properly plan everything out like you should have. I've had to do what I could to cover for you. (My standard fees will apply.) I was pretty sure you'd be smart enough to check your email. Now I just hope that you can get to a computer to do that while you are traveling in China

After you left, the bunch from the Cafe came by. The Old Lady was asking if you had told us what your plans were. For a fee I told her that you didn't really say anything other than you were going to China to try and save H's life.

The Old Lady insisted that you were likely to be the victim of some evil plot of H's to make your part time condition permanent. She says that we have to try and save you from it by telling her all that we know. Kitty Girl was upset and I think Duck-Boy was hoping that H was going to do something terrible to you.

I went to school and withdrew you. Principal Pineapple seemed really happy about that. Ms. Ki Vamp seemed really disappointed. She said it was a shame since you had finally started to apply yourself. Maybe you can arrange something with her when you get back. I'm sure she'd be willing to help tutor you.

True Blunder can't seem to make up his mind how to take your leaving. On the one hand he says the "foul sorcerer has fled in fear of the Blue Thunder's prowess." On the other hand he's worried that you have "Kidnapped the pigtailed goddess to have your way with her." I think he wants to go search for you, but doesn't have a clue where to start looking.

I haven't heard anything from Miss Black Rose, so I don't know what her thoughts on the matter are. P-Chan hasn't been around so I guess that means you luck out when it comes to trouble with Lost Boy. On the other hand, if he's lost again, there is the chance he could turn up where you are. You'd better watch your back.

It also occurs to me that if H's plan works you could have a problem. H may need a new passport to go with her new looks. I've got my people ready to take care of that, but I'm going to need a picture. Can you get me one?

Get back to me as soon as you can.

Signed,

The Ice Queen"

Ranma grinned at the screen. "Thanks for looking out for us, Nabs."

In a quizzical tone Noriko repeated, "Nabs?"

With a chuckle, Ranma answered, "Since we started getting along better, that's been my nickname for her. She says she hates it, but I don't really believe her when she says that."

The redhead composed a reply to the email.

"To: Frozen Monarch

From: Undomesticated Equine

Subject: Re: Your trip

Attached File

Attached File

We made it to China and H's plan worked. She's all better now. Check out the attached files for the passport photo and one of her and me together to get an idea of what she looks like now. I don't know if this is the action of the Spring or if this is what she would have looked like if the Cruel Man hadn't got the witch to cast her spell.

She says as a tribute to the witch who was her friend, she is now going by the name Tendo Noriko. We're telling people we're cousins who met up at the valley where the H died. We held a ceremony to bury what we had left of him (old clothes.) Noriko says she's also buried all of his bad character traits. We'll have to wait and see how well she does with that. As long as she is making an honest effort, I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. So far she seems to be trying.

It seems there are more Amazon tribes than just the Old Lady's. The village where I'm sending this from is one such tribe. Before you get into a panic, I should mention that they don't get along too well with the Old Lady's tribe. They are willing to help us by letting us stay here and feeding us while we wait for you to mail the new passport. (I'll include the address to mail to at the end of this email.)

We are going to have to work for our food while we're here, but the jobs they found for us don't sound like they will be too hard. If need be, they'll hide me. Since the Old Lady's people haven't seen Noriko, she shouldn't need to hide.

The Matriarch here has told me there is a sorceress named Watanabe Atchika who lives in Minato Ward. She says the exact place is Azaabu-Juuban. This sorceress is supposed to know magic that would allow me to gain more control over my condition. If you could learn an address, phone number or both, I'd like very much to talk to her. You can put it on my tab.

Since I'm borrowing a computer, don't give too much personal info in your responses to me.

Signed,

Undomesticated Equine"

Noriko said, "I guess that says what needs to be said without giving too much detail."

"Yeah," the redhead agreed. She typed in the address of Lo Shen's house and gave the command to encrypt the whole email. When she was satisfied with it, she clicked "Send."

As Ranma was logging off the email server there came a light rap on the door. Po Shen opened the door and asked, "Are you two about done? Supper will be ready in about 15 minutes.

Noriko turned and replied, "Yes, we're done here."

They headed down the stairs. Supper was good and Noriko's new taste buds helped her to really appreciate the meal.

That night Ranma just stripped down to boxers and a tank top to sleep in. Some girls in the village who were close to the same size as Noriko had donated some clothing for loan to the blonde girl. In order to not create any problems, The older girl changed into her nightgown in the bathroom.

When Noriko got back from the bathroom, Ranma was already in bed. The blonde girl got into bed then turned off the lamp by the bedside. There was silence for a time.

"Ranma?" Noriko's voice sounded uncertain.

The redhead answered, "What is it Noriko?"

"Do you remember that mental exercise you asked me to do?"

Ranma remembered it very well. She said, "Yeah, what about it?"

The other girl hesitated. "I tried it. I imagined what it would be like for me as I am now to be groped by me as I used to be. I imagined myself unable to stop him."

The younger girl was silent for a moment before asking, "How did you feel about that?"

"You were right," confessed the former man. "I… I felt everything you described, violated, helpless, all of it. When I understood that I had been causing women to feel that way, I was terribly ashamed."

She was studying the ceiling in the room as she thought about it. Finally she said, "I don't think I could even remember all of the women and girls that I groped. There were so many. I don't think it would be possible to apologize to all of them, since many are dead by now. (It has been a couple centuries since I started.) Even if I can't apologize to them I can still apologize to you."

When she paused again, Ranma said, "Go on."

Noriko said, "I… I groped you more than any other woman. Part of it was simply because you were there. You were in the same house and I could reach you with little effort. Another part of it was because you were able to fight me. That made the game more of a challenge, more fun."

At the mention of the word "fun" a slight growl escaped from Ranma's throat.

The blonde hurried on, "What I'm trying to say is that I'm really sorry for what I've done. I don't know if you can find it in your heart to forgive me but I do ask that you try. I will do whatever I can to make it up to you."

Silence followed. The silence lasted long enough that Noriko grew worried. Finally she begged, "Ranma, please say something."

The younger girl finally spoke, "I've been trying to figure out how to answer that. First I want to say that I'm willing to believe that you honestly regret the things you did. I guess that's part of what makes me the sucker that Nabiki always takes advantage of. In this case I need to be clearer about this. 'Willing to believe' means just what it says. It doesn't mean I'm totally convinced."

She was silent for a moment again before continuing, "You say you want to make it up to me, that you would apologize to all of the women you groped if it were possible. What you need to do to make it up to me, I don't really know. I'm going to need to think about it a lot. I will say your apology just now was a good first step. You need to think about this too."

In a quick change of mood, Ranma said, "Ok, that's enough of that for now. How about you shut up and get some sleep? We're both tired. We can save any more heavy thinking for when we're fresh and rested."

Recognizing the wisdom of that, Noriko closed her eyes and laid her head back on the pillow. "Good night, Ranma."

"Good night, Noriko."

Author's Note: Our travelers are taking the steps to get back to Japan with as little trouble as possible. Ranma is willing to listen to Noriko's apology so there is at least a chance for a relationship between them.

My thanks to UNSpacy000 for beta reading this and the previous chapter. With that help I am pleased with how they turned out. I hope you readers are pleased as well.


	9. Chapter 9 Training

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 8

Training

The next morning the two "girls" got up to find Po Shen had left them clothes. Ranma grumbled about putting on feminine undergarments, but used the garments provided. The clothes she had brought for the trip were very much in need of washing. The rest of the outfits provided for Ranma were borrowed from elsewhere in the village. They had found a girl who was the same size at the red haired martial artist.

The outfit provided for Ranma was a Chinese pantsuit similar to some that Ranma had seen Shampoo wear. The gender changer felt that at least if she had to wear girl's clothing, it was better to wear pants than some kind of dress. The added bonus was that she could move well in it. Her outfit was a soft pastel blue in color.

Noriko found she had been left a similar outfit but in yellow. Considering that she had been a man for centuries, she had expected herself to feel more resistance to the idea of wearing feminine clothing. Thus is was a bit of a shock that she actually found herself feeling disappointed that she hadn't been given a dress to wear.

On the other hand this might be the best choice. She was supposed to be teaching martial arts and she needed clothing she could move in. She had seen Shampoo fight in an outfit like this and knew that it was cut in such a way that a person could move well in it.

They took turns in the bath but cut their morning ablutions short. They went from there down to the dining room where they met their hosts. Lo Shen gave them directions to the police training ground for Noriko and the local clinic for Ranma. The Matriarch told them, "I already told you yesterday that our doctor's name is Rin Se but she won't mind if you call her Rinse. The sensei for our police prefers to be called The Brick or just Brick. When you meet her you'll understand why."

Ranma cocked her head and commented, "She sounds like someone I'd like to meet."

The Elder nodded. "After you finish your duties at the clinic you can go to join Noriko at the Police training ground. I'm sure The Brick would enjoy a sparring match with you. She would never actually come out and say such a thing, but those who know her would be sure of it."

After finishing breakfast everyone dispersed to their respective jobs. Ranma headed to the clinic. At the door of the clinic she was met by a tall, skinny young man with close-cropped brown hair. The young man wore glasses that seemed to constantly slide down his nose.

He gave a bow of his head and said, "Hello, you must be Ranko. I'm Comb. I know it's a silly name."

Well, at least the guy seemed to have a lot of enthusiasm. Ranma returned the bow and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Comb. Yes, I'm Ranko. I'm supposed to help out here for a couple of weeks."

Comb nodded. "Do you have any medical training?"

Ranma thought to herself, "_I hope this wasn't a mistake_." Out loud she said, "Mostly first aid. I'm trained in treating wounds and stuff like that. From hanging around a clinic I know a little bit about herbal medicine (very little) and some pressure points. I can manipulate my own ki and can do that a little bit for other people."

The young man looked bemused. "That's a rather strange mix of skills. You're a martial artist, aren't you?"

Ranma looked at the floor for a moment. "It shows, does it?"

"Well, you move like a warrior," explained Comb. "Treating and caring for wounds are among the basic skills that a martial artist or warrior would need. The herbal medicine is a bit more unusual for a martial artist. The pressure points could also be used in fighting. So far as I know only the most advanced martial artists can manipulate their ki beyond using it to enhance their strength and speed."

The redhead couldn't resist a smirk as she summoned a ball of pure ki and let it glow in her hand. When she dismissed that she could hear the sound of hands clapping. She looked and found a woman standing there. She was of middle height (taller than Ranma's girl form) with graying blue hair.

The woman was wearing a silk pantsuit similar in style to the one Ranma was wearing. Over that she was wearing a white lab coat. She also was wearing glasses, but didn't seem to have the same problem as Comb with the glasses sliding down. The doctor also had a stethoscope hanging around her neck.

The doctor gave a slight bow and said, "An impressive display of ki control. I'd guess you could use that as a weapon if you needed to. Still, healing is always more complicated than destroying things. Tell me, have you used that impressive reserve of ki for something other than fighting?"

This sounded like a verbal challenge. Ranma answered, "When my friend Noriko was dying from ki depletion I transferred some of my own ki into her aura to keep her alive. Of course she was a man at the time."

The doctor frowned. "A man? Jusenkyo?"

Ranma nodded. "Me too."

"Ah," said the doctor. "I thought I sensed something about you. I'm guessing you're originally male."

The redhead nodded. The doctor smiled now. "That was a nice piece of work with the ki transfer. Did you have any training on how to do that?"

The girl noticed that the doctor had refrained from asking why Ranma was currently female. She answered, "No training. I found my friend more dead than alive and had to do something to save him. I guess you could say it was instinct."

The doctor's smile seemed to gain in warmth. "Then it would seem that you have good instincts. Lo Shen said you're only likely to be with us for a couple of weeks, so I won't have a lot of time to give you more than the barest of basics. It should still be enough to teach you if this is something you want to do with your life."

The sex changer nodded. "I get the feeling you don't think too much of martial artists."

The doctor was not the least bit apologetic. She said, "Don't get me wrong, I know that warriors and martial artists have their place in the world. I just don't like having to patch up the losers in their fights."

With a slightly defiant expression, Ranma said, "I really didn't have much choice in the matter. When I was five, my father took me away from my mom on a 10 year training trip. The whole time was spent in martial arts training. Nobody ever asked me if it was what I wanted to do."

The doctor's manner sobered. "I'm sorry if I brought up unpleasant memories. Come on back to the office. The first patient is scheduled to arrive in about 15 minutes."

In another part of town Noriko was led to the police station. From there they went into the open field in the back. There was a tall woman who was square in her build. She was powerfully muscled. Her face gave the impression of being carved from granite. Her short hair was a red that was reminiscent of a brick.

The woman introduced herself, "I am called the Brick or just Brick. I do have another name but I like Brick better than the name my parents gave me."

The name suited her. The woman gave off an aura of strength and solidity. The Brick said, "The Matriarch tells me you are the master of your own martial arts style. Is that true?"

Noriko bowed and said, "That is true. However, if you were hoping to spar with a martial arts grand master, I'm afraid I must disappoint you. Before, I was a man with many years of experience. What you see before you now is the body that Jusenkyo has gifted me with. I know all the old moves but it will take some time for me to get this body trained to a sufficient level of strength and speed that I can execute all of them."

"Used to be a man?" The powerfully built woman looked over the blonde. "I'm guessing this body is an improvement over the old one."

Noriko couldn't help laughing. "You could say that. The old body was _very_ old. In fact it was dying of old age."

Brick nodded. "So you went from old and male to young, female and pretty. Personally I think pretty is overrated."

Silently, the blonde thought, "_You would_." Out loud she said, "I can still teach."

The police trainer agreed, "Yes, I would imagine your knowledge would still be good. I hear you won't be with us for very long. For the time you're here, I'll be willing to help you train to get your strength back."

"Thank you, Brick. After my friend, Ranko, gets done with her work at the clinic, I'm sure she would like to come and spar with you. She's a very strong martial artist."

"If that's true, what's she doing at the clinic?"

Noriko shrugged. "The Matriarch felt that was better suited to her. I have the feeling that she may have the makings of a great doctor."

Brick sounded doubtful. "A noble calling to be sure. But to turn from martial arts to medicine seems odd."

The blonde shrugged. "Not as odd as you think. Besides, the child was forced into martial arts at an early age. While she has great aptitude for the Art, it may be that her talents would be better suited to healing."

The martial arts trainer shrugged. "If that's true, Dr. Rin Se will find it out."

Noriko nodded. "That I may assess your level of skill, I would like to spar with you. Keep in mind that I'm not up to my proper level of strength so go easy on me. I want to see your moves."

The instructor pointed toward the police station. "The class is coming. Maybe it would be more instructive for you to observe me sparring with some of my students."

Thus it was a short while later that Noriko was watching the students. She did get a good feel for the skill levels of both the teacher and the students. Before long she was able to start suggesting new moves or refinements to moves that were being used.

At the clinic the doctor was taking a lecturing tone as she spoke to her helpers. When a patient came in she would recite back the symptoms. Because of the newness of her students, the teacher would then list some of the conditions that could cause those symptoms. When needed she would have one or both of her helpers fetch pieces of equipment or instruments. For Ranma she often would have to describe what the instrument looked like as well giving the name of the instrument.

It was likely that examination of every patient took longer than it would have otherwise. The doctor explained nearly every step she took. The exception to this was the things she had already explained earlier in the day. If a patient came in with a similar complaint to one who had been earlier, the doctor would question her helpers to see if they remembered from the earlier patients.

Of course, the helpers did all of the cleanup cleanup.

Both of the travelers were kept busy at their respective jobs most of the day. When the doctor's closed her office for the day, Ranma went to the police station. The students had been dismissed for the day, but Noriko and Brick were going through a light sparring match. A few of the students from earlier had stayed after class to watch.

Ranma joined the students on the periphery of the training ground and watched for a while. The instructor noticed the audience. She stepped back and turned to the redhead. "Are you Ranko?"

The redhead bowed. "That's me."

The police trainer said, "We shall see if you live up to the praise your sensei has given you. Defend yourself!"

With no more warning than that, the powerfully built woman rushed forward. Ranma ducked under a punch and snapped off a kick. Her kick connected and Ranma felt some pain come from it. Damn, the woman was tough! She probably had gone through the training for the Breaking Point technique to be so tough.

A few exchanges of blows and Ranma had an evaluation of her opponent's fighting style. The woman was very strong and seemed to favor moves that used that strength. She also seemed to disdain defense, depending on her toughness to protect her. Ranma adjusted her attack to fight as if she was going against Ryoga.

For the first time in ages The Brick had to adjust her fighting style. She found the petite redhead was hitting vital spots. Places that still hurt even with her toughness. This was also the first time in the students' memories nicknamed Brick had to start fighting defensively.

After a while of this, the police trainer jumped back, held her hand up and said, "That's enough for now."

Ranma eyed her quizzically. After a moment the woman said, "I see that your teacher didn't exaggerate. You have good defense and an intelligent offence. I admit that was a bit of a surprise." She rubbed absently at the inside of her right elbow. "Your natural strength isn't as much as mine, but with ki enhancement, you are equal or even a little stronger. I wasn't using ki enhancement, but I do know how."

She raised an eyebrow. "I hate to admit it, but I don't think I could match your speed even with ki enhancement. I could tell you weren't even using your full speed."

Ranma smirked. "Yeah, I'm pretty fast. I do have to admit that I'm faster in girl form than am as a guy."

"Oh?" The trainer gave the redhead another appraising look. "Does your male form have a compensation for the loss of speed?" 

"Yeah, my male form is bigger and stronger."

The big woman frowned and shook her head. "I'm tempted to ask you to change to male form and see what you can do; but Lo Shen said you needed to stay female for the time you stay with us.

At Ranma's sour expression, the police trainer clapped a hand to the redhead's shoulder and said, "There's worse things you could be than a woman. From what I've heard you could probably use some time in female form so your growth can catch up to your male form."

Ranma cast a glare at Noriko. Responding to the look, the blonde held up her hands and said, "I'm sorry. I didn't know you wanted to keep it a secret."

The younger girl shook her head and said, "I guess there's no real harm done. I'd like to ask that you not be so quick to share information about that in the future."

Suddenly the expression on Ranma's face turned into an evil grin. "Now I seem to remember you wanted to get some exercise so you could get your new body in shape."

While the Brick's mouth didn't turn up at the corners there was just the faintest hint of a glint of humor in her eyes. She said, "I can help with that as well. You really do need to have strength to match your skills."

Noriko looked back and forth between the other two women and suppressed the desire to groan. She thought, "_I'm doomed_."

Sometime later Ranma walked back to the home of Lo Shen, not in the least hampered by the weight of Noriko who was draped over her shoulder in a fireman's carry. The older woman was conscious, but so tired she could scarcely move. When Ranma had offered to carry her, the blonde readily agreed.

Noriko groaned and said, "I'm going to be sore tomorrow."

Ranma glanced at the woman on her shoulder and commented, "All you had to do was say you'd had enough. Even a woman like the Brick isn't deliberately cruel. But you just had to keep going until you couldn't even stand up anymore. I hope you realize you are probably going to be pretty much useless tomorrow."

Only a groan answered. Ranma rolled her eyes as she stepped up to the door of the house. She knocked, and the door was answered by Po Shen. The young woman's eyes went wide, "Oh, my goodness! What happed to Noriko?"

Ranma looked at the woman on her shoulder and said, "A little too much hard exercise with The Brick. Actually she did a little better than I expected. I'd have to rate Noriko's level of fitness about equal to a high school soccer player. Still pretty weak for a martial arts master, but we can work on it. If nothing else, today's session was important to teach her what her limits are."

"What were you doing during this?" Po Shen wanted to know.

The redhead's eyebrows went up. "I was following along, of course. What we were doing was a good workout. I feel a bit tired myself."

The young woman looked Ranma over. The shorter girl couldn't be too tired if she had the energy to carry Noriko. Shortly Ranma was inside and Noriko was on a couch in the living room.

They were just in time for dinner. When Jin Rei announced the meal, Ranma went over and let Noriko lean on her as they went into the dining room. While they were eating Ranma said, "Hey Po, if you don't mind I'd like to get on your computer after dinner to check if Nabiki has answered my email from yesterday."

The older woman nodded. "That won't be a problem. I've got some other work to do before I need to use the computer myself. You're welcome to it."

After the meal Ranma helped Noriko up the stairs and they went into Po Shen's room to use the computer. Ranma was seated in the desk chair, while Noriko lay down on Po's bed.

Before long Ranma was logged onto the mail server and checked her in-box. Besides some spam the only significant piece of mail was from Frozen Monarch.

Ranma clicked on it then decrypted the mail.

"To: Undomesticated Equine

From: Frozen Monarch

Subject: Got your Pictures

The picture with the blue background should work fine for a passport photo. I've passed a copy on to my people and they will get to work on it. You should have the new passport in 3 weeks at the most.

I took a good look at the other picture. Wow! Are you sure that pool you fell into wasn't the Spring of Drowned Beautiful Young Hot Girl? N is gorgeous. I'm jealous.

I'm pretty sure I found your sorceress. It wasn't hard. She runs a store called the Spell Book. From what I can find out it is a pretty standard occult book shop with some New Age stuff mixed in. Rumor has it that there is a back room or even a basement where there are real magic books, supplies and even weapons. If anyone could help you with your problem, she'd probably be the one. What kind of control do you think she could give you?

It's nice that you found people who are willing to let you stay with them while you wait.

There is a possible problem here. I'm guessing that a certain ninja servant has been talking to Café bunch. The True Blunder is still saying that the 'foul sorcerer has fled from his just wrath.' But now he's started going on about how the Pigtailed Goddess has been kidnapped by the ancient lecher. The Black Rose is glad the competition for her 'Ranma-Sama' is gone, but says that even she wouldn't want her worst enemy in such captivity as the red haired one must now be suffering.

I've heard nothing new from the Café crowd. Miss Big Spat dropped by yesterday to ask where you had gone. I told her the agreed on story of you going to help out a sick friend. I get the feeling she doesn't believe it.

What have they got you doing to earn your food and lodging?

I'm doing what I can to keep things contained, but considering the people I have to deal with, there's likely to be a limit to what I can do.

Signed,

The Frozen Monarch"

Ranma thought about it. After a moment she said, "3 weeks, maybe less. I guess that shouldn't be too much trouble."

"Speak for yourself," Noriko said from the bed.

Ranma let out a big sigh. "You'll recover. You just overworked yourself. It not like you did any permanent damage to yourself."

A groan answered her. The blonde finally said, "I'm going to have to channel my ki to speed up my recovery if I'm going to even have a chance of helping with Brick's class tomorrow."

Ranma looked with an interested expression. "I can do that a little myself. Since you always seemed to recover from even the worst beatings from angry women wanting their lingerie back, I'd guess you can do that self-healing trick better than I can. Can you teach me?"

"Eh?" The blonde seemed to think about it. "Sure, I can do that. Part of it comes from having a very high ki reserve. Even if I did get a new body, my ki reserves did transfer over."

Ranma shook her head. "I think part of it may be in the technique. If it were just how bad the wounds were, I'd think the extra ki would do it. But you don't just heal up worse damage, you do it lots faster than I can."

"Okay," Noriko agreed, "I'll teach you."

Ranma nodded, and began typing.

"To: Frozen Monarch

From: Undomesticated Equine

Subject: Re: Got Your Pictures

Yeah, I know. N''s really pretty and she's older than my girl form. It sort of makes me feel like a little kid.

The Elder here said the sorceress could change the trigger for my transformation from water to will power. That still wouldn't mean that I would stop changing, just that I'd be better able to control when.

It was explained to me that the curse wants me to spend at least half or more of my time in cursed form. If it thinks there's been too much time since I was last in cursed form, it magically attracts water. She tells me that if I had just got in the habit of sleeping in girl form, I could have cut down on the number of water accidents during the day. It can also cause hot water accidents if I've been a girl too long, but exactly how long that is, I don't know.

This Amazon village doesn't have Warriors; they call them police officers instead. N is going to teach them some basic Anything Goes moves. The Matriarch seemed to think I'd be best off helping out at the local medical clinic. We're staying at the Matriarch's house.

All for now

Signed,

Undomesticated Equine"

Ranma encrypted the message and sent it.

In a thoughtful tone Noriko said, "Nabiki's comment got me thinking. I don't think I've ever seen a Nyaniichuan curse victim whose girl form wasn't at least cute. Most would qualify as pretty or even beautiful. I've never heard of one who was ugly or even plain."

Ranma sat for a moment. "Well that's interesting, I guess…"

Noriko rolled her eyes. Old people say stuff like that all the time. Oh, well. Maybe now that she was young again, she could start relating better with young people.

When Ranma logged out of the email server she put the computer in standby mode for Po Shen to get to work with it quickly. The redhead stepped out of the room and went partway down the stairs.

Po Shen was reading a book and making notes on a pad of paper. Ranma spoke just loud enough to get her attention. "I'm done with the computer now."

The other woman looked up and nodded.

When Ranma got to the guest room she found Noriko was already in bed. She looked at the redhead with a questioning expression.

The younger girl nodded then stepped up to the other's bed. She stood at the side of the bed and held her hands over Noriko. Next she closed her eyes and tuned her ki senses. Having done the ki transfers, Ranma was now used to connecting with another person's aura. She hadn't tried something like this since Happosai became Noriko.

There was a difference now. The aura had a distinct feminine feel that had not been there before. Ranma took that to mean that Noriko was adapting well to the change. She supposed that was good.

She took a moment to locate all of the ki flows in the other girl's body. When she felt she was ready for the demonstration, she said, "Ok, do it."

Ranma watched, fascinated, as Noriko channeled ki within herself. Ranma could tell that she was doing it slower than normal to allow the younger girl to see what was being done.

The redhead was watching with the same concentration she used when watching any martial arts technique. The same talent that allowed her to master a technique by only seeing it was now applied to this self-healing.

When Noriko was finished she said, "And that's it."

Ranma pulled in her ki senses and opened her eyes. She asked, "How do you feel?"

Noriko answered honestly, "Still tired but it's the kind of fatigue that sleep and food will fix. Did you get a good read on the technique?"

Ranma grinned. "Yep, I got it. I could tell you were going slow so I could see it. I'm pretty sure I can do it myself. Actually, from what I saw, I'm thinking I could do it to someone else. I just don't know enough about ki flow patterns to try it right now. If I did, I'd probably do more harm than good."

The blonde nodded. "I bet your Dr. Rinse could teach you about ki patterns, if that's what you want. You should ask her when you see her tomorrow."

"Yeah," she said. "I'll do that."

Noriko smiled inwardly. Ranma really seemed excited at the thought of learning healing techniques. Maybe Lo Shen was right about Ranma. Maybe he was better suited to the healing arts than martial ones.

The blonde said, "I'm pretty tired, so I'm going to turn in now."

Ranma nodded and turned out the light. She moved over to her own bed. She wasn't feeling particularly sleepy at the moment. She wondered if the good doctor would have a ki flow pattern chart that she could borrow.

The young girl lay down on her own bed and closed her eyes. She wasn't trying to sleep. Ranma again tuned her ki senses and focused them on herself. She wasn't looking for specific problems but seeking to learn the pattern of ki flows. Mentally she rehearsed the technique Noriko had shown her without actually using it.

Ranma did eventually drift off to sleep.

Author's Note: And so Ranma begins learning more about medicine and Noriko gets in some hard training. At least they are doing something constructive while they wait for Noriko's new passport.

Thanks to UNSpacy000 for help with this chapter.


	10. Chapter 10 getting stronger

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 9

Getting Stronger

The next day Ranma told Dr. Rinse about the self-healing ki technique. The doctor was suitably impressed. She was willing to loan Ranma a chart of ki patterns so she could study them.

When Noriko walked into the class, the Brick was surprised. She had expected the blonde woman to beg off the teaching because of sore muscles or at least complain about them. The woman didn't say why she was able to move around, and the Brick refused to ask.

During the day's classes Noriko mentioned to the Brick that Ranma knew the Breaking Point technique but hadn't gotten the toughening up exercises. The instructor nodded. She did train her recruits in that technique. She agreed that after the class was done she would set up the boulders for Ranma.

It was just getting toward the end of the noon hour and Ranma had finished her lunch and was doing a little clean up in preparation for the next patient. There came a clattering noise from a closet.

Wondering what was going on, the redhead opened the closet door. From the interior of the closet came a tall, muscular, black haired boy who wore dark trousers and a yellow shirt. In his hair he wore a yellow bandana with black spots. He fell on his face.

It took a moment for the boy to realize that he was out of the closet. Pushing himself up, he looked around. Nearby he spied an oddly familiar looking redheaded girl wearing a Chinese pantsuit.

Dismissing the thought, Ryoga asked, "I'm sorry Miss but I'm lost. Could you tell me how to get to the Tendo Dojo?" 

Scowling at the Lost Boy, Ranma sighed. "I'm not even going to ask you how you got in the closet. The Tendo Dojo is in Japan and right now you're in China - Qinghai Province in the Bayancala Mountain Range to be exact."

"China? I thought I was in Osaka." The bandana-wearing boy considered the information. "Isn't Qinghai Province where Jusenkyo is located?"

Ranma rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that's in this province. You are about a day and half walk away from it, though."

The boy nodded as if weighing the answer. After another moment he asked, "If we're in China, why are you speaking Japanese?"

The redhead closed her eyes for a moment, rubbing her fingers across her forehead. "I'm talking to you in Japanese because that the language you spoke in when you said you were lost. Besides, my Mandarin sucks."

The boy nodded again. That did seem to make some kind of sense. Still he needed to address another question. "Forgive me, but you look familiar."

The girl asked herself, "_Why is this guy so dense_?" Out loud she explained, "I look familiar because I'm Ranma. As long as we've known each other you should be able to recognize me, Ryoga."

"Ranma?" He looked at her closer. Now he knew why the girl looked so familiar. "You have played with Akane's affections for the last time. Saotome Ranma, PREPARE…"

Before he could finish his usual challenge phrase Ranma shouted, "Damn it, Ryoga! THIS IS A DOCTOR'S OFFICE! Don't you dare pull your usual crap here."

The Lost Boy stood with his mouth open in mid-challenge. Before he could think of a way to respond to that, another voice demanded, "Young man, why are you harassing my assistant? And how did you get in here anyway?"

He turned and saw a woman in a white lab coat and a stethoscope draped around her neck. If he was in a doctor's office, she must be the doctor. "Your assistant?"

Dr. Rinse frowned. Was this boy hard of hearing? "Yes, I said assistant. Miss Tendo is staying in our village for a few weeks with her cousin and is helping me out while she's here."

"Tendo?" The boy was more confused. "This is Saotome Ranma. She even said she was."

The doctor's stern demeanor intensified, "I don't care what you say this girl's name is. I know her by the name Tendo Ranko and she had proved to be a good assistant. True, she is a bit ignorant of medicine, but she is smart, eager and a quick learner. If you have some private quarrel with her it will have to wait until after the end of office hours."

"But…"

"Leave. Now!" The doctor wasn't taking any guff.

"Yes, Ma'am," Ryoga meekly responded. He started back toward the door of the closet before Ranma stopped him. Comb had to lead the boy to the correct door, muttering the whole way.

When the unwelcome guest was safely out of the buiding, Rinse turned to Ranma and asked, "You know that boy?"

The redhead nodded. "Yeah. He's Hibiki Ryoga. He's like a sometimes friend, sometimes rival. He's very strong, very tough. He also has one of the worst senses of direction of anyone on Earth. There have been some people who said Ryoga could get lost in a room with only one door. Others said he can teleport, which gets him lost on other continents."

The doctor considered that before asking, "What is his grievance against you?"

Ranma shrugged. "He blames me for getting a Jusenkyo curse. For a long time he was in love with my fiancé and fought me because of her. He has a different girlfriend now, but still attacks me because I did something to 'make Akane sad.' The trouble with all that is that he has almost no restraint and yet he uses attacks that cause tons of property damage and risk hurting innocent bystanders."

The older woman glanced toward the front door of the clinic. "That could be a problem."

The younger girl let out a big sigh. "One of the worst parts of it is that he blames me for almost everything bad that happens to him or ever did happen to him. If his lost curse causes him to appear at the North Pole, he'll say that it's my fault. If he gets caught in a rain shower and changes to his cursed form, that's my fault too. If my fiancée is sad because she did poorly on a test in school, he'll twist it around to where that's my fault too."

The doctor shook her head. "That boy is in need of counseling."

The aquantransexual gave a short, bitter laugh. "You'll get no argument from me on that."

The redhead paused before continuing. "In a way it's a good thing that he came here after I've only been here a couple of days."

"How is that a good thing?" Rinse demanded.

Ranma explained. "Even with him always getting lost, he almost always manages to pop up wherever I am. I don't know how he does it. I could make a bet, though that by the time you close the office for the day, he won't be anywhere to be found in the village."

The older woman laughed. "As well as you seem to know this boy, I think that would be a foolish wager. Nevertheless, I'm going to phone the police and ask them to keep an eye on him, just to be safe."

The redhead nodded. "The way Ryoga is, he'll likely be on the other side of the world by this evening and probably won't make it back here for at least two weeks. I'd like to hope that he doesn't get back here before Noriko and I leave."

"Other side of the world?"

The sex changing girl smirked. "At times Ryoga has been on every continent in the world in the space of a couple of weeks or at least that's what his descriptions of the places he's been sound like. He almost always thinks he's still in Japan, but they don't have pyramids in Japan, or polar bears except in a zoo. Yet for all of that he never gets on a plane or a boat."

The doctor shook her head. "Amazing."

"If I had to guess where he's going to end up next, I'd say America." Ranma snickered.

They broke off their conversation as a patient walked through the door.

The police were notified, but Ranma's prediction proved to be accurate. The cops watched the boy for about two hours. Then he turned a corner and by the time the policewomen turned the same corner, the Lost Boy was nowhere in sight. A quick search of the village yielded no further trace of him.

After the clinic closed for the day Ranma proceeded to the training field in back of the police station. She noticed that two boulders hung on ropes from metal frames and four more were positioned around the field. A smirk came to her face in contemplation of this. It looked like Noriko had convinced the Brick to give Ranma Bukusai Tenketsu training. The smirk quickly died as the thought occurred to her, "_This is going to hurt_." Oh well. She had heard the saying "no pain, no gain."

Noriko was lifting weights. Some of the police trainees were lounging on the borders of the training ground, curious about the Outsider girls they had heard about. The rumors had it that this was a girl who could give even The Brick a decent challenge in a sparring match. In addition to the trainees, there were a few off-duty regular officers who were also drawn by their curiosity.

Ranma asked Noriko, "How are you feeling?"

The blonde smiled. "I feel better and stronger. When I healed myself last night, it seems I still got the benefit of the exercise without the soreness today, at least not all of the soreness. By working myself to exhaustion every day and healing every night, I should be able to get stronger a lot faster."

The redhead considered that for a moment. "It's kind of like the Sayians on Dragonball Z."

Brick looked puzzled but Noriko nodded. While the former man hadn't seen much of the show, she had seen some episodes. Being caught watching such programs wouldn't have fit with the "ancient pervert" image she had built.

Ranma clarified, "Dragonball Z is an anime. In the story the Sayians are this super badass alien warrior race. They're super strong, have powerful energy attacks, can fly… Anyway they are examples of the saying 'What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.'"

The Brick was familiar with the saying, but didn't quite see how it applied to cartoon characters. From her association with the police sensei, Noriko knew the woman wouldn't ask so she helpfully explained, "If the Saiyan characters in that program got beaten to the point where they were close to death, after they healed up they were always stronger than before, sometime a lot stronger."

The Brick gave a brief grunt in acknowledgement.

The Police instructor needed to get the conversation back on track. She said, "Before we begin your training on the Breaking Point there are some things you need to know. The first thing is that after you have achieved the necessary toughness in your female form, you will need to do it again in your male form. While physical _skills_ carry over from one body to the other, physical _conditioning_ does not (or at least not as much)."

Ranma had suspected this for a long time. She nodded to indicate her understanding.

The Brick continued, "When training a woman in this technique there is an additional step that men don't need. They put on a crotch protector and they are good to go. A woman's breasts tend to be quite sensitive and need to be protected. There are two main ways you can achieve that protection. One of them is to wear protective chest gear. The other is use a ki manipulation technique called Iron Skin. Since you can already manipulate ki, the second technique would likely be best for you."

At Ranma's puzzled expression, The Brick explained, "It is a way to temporarily do what the Bukusai Tenketsu training does permanently (or at least long term.) You channel your ki into the skin of the parts of your body you wish to protect, making the skin iron hard. While it is possible to do over your whole body it takes a lot of ki and tends to tire you out quickly."

She looked Ranma over then said, "The point is that with that technique you can partially harden your breasts so they can get the toughening without damaging them." She paused before adding the comment, "I would not want to be the one held responsible for damaging that bosom." She pointed at Ranma's chest.

"Huh?" Ranma was confused by the comment.

Noriko paused in her exercises to explain, amusement in her tone, "The Brick isn't used to giving compliments. Basically what she means is that you have a beautiful figure. If she were to be responsible for damaging those impressive breasts, a horde of men would be demanding her head and not a few women as well."

"Humph!" That was the only response the Brick made. Even if she refused to say it, it was obvious that she agreed with Noriko's statement.

The Brick did have more to say about the techniques. "When you are toughened up you will be more resistant to punches, kicks and chops. It is said that if a person with the toughening uses Iron Skin in addition, they can withstand a gunshot."

Impressed, Ranma asked, "Is that true?"

The police instructor's perpetual scowl deepened. "I hate to give a vague answer like this, but I'd have to say that it depends."

Ranma's expression of confusion was back. "Depends on what?"

The answer was, "It depends on the weapon and the ammunition. If it was a handgun firing plain lead bullets then you could easily survive it. However, if you tried to go up against a person with a high powered rifle and armor piercing ammunition, then you'd be better off ducking and covering. Now, it is unlikely that a person shooting at you would do you the courtesy of telling you what kind of ammo they are using. Because of that, as a practical consideration, it is safer to assume that any guns fired at you could injure, or kill you."

The redhead shuddered in consideration of that. "That makes sense." "_Note to self: don't let people shoot at you if you can avoid it_."

Noriko went back to her exercises while the Brick instructed Ranma in how to use the Iron Skin technique. Demonstrating her incredible learning talent in matters relating to martial arts techniques, it only took her 15 minutes to master it.

The Brick stepped up to one of the boulders on the field and patted the rock. "Noriko tells me you already know the Breaking Point technique and only lack the toughening. I want you to point out the breaking point on this boulder without actually trying to blow it up."

The redhead grinned. "_Great! This'll give me a chance to try out a variation on the technique I figured out_." She took a stance and used Iron Skin to harden her index finger. She then thrust her finger out to the point she could sense in the boulder and called out, "_Bukusai Tenketsu_ Revised – Slow Crumble!"

Instead of an explosion, cracks radiated out from the impact point. From the initial cracks more spread for a minute until the whole boulder slumped down into a loose pile of rubble.

Ranma thrust her fist in the air and leapt up while shouting, "Yeah! It worked!" The people watching stood with their jaws gaping.

The Brick poked her finger into the pile of rubble as if to assure herself that the boulder actually was broken to bits. she asked, "When did you learn this?"

Looking a bit sheepish, the girl scratched the back of her neck as she explained, "I figured this out a couple of days ago. Noriko (in her old body) told me about a different way to use the technique for finding the Breaking Point. It got me thinking about an alternate way to destroy the boulder. I figured this way it would be easier to clean up the mess and wouldn't create the shrapnel. I wasn't sure if it would work."

The police instructor picked up one of the fragments and examined it. It was rather jagged. She said, a trifle drily, "I'd say it works well enough."

Her already stern expression turned into a scowl as she dropped the fragment back on the pile. "While it shows an understanding of the technique to be creating your own variations, it was highly irresponsible to test it here. You say you weren't sure it would work? What if, instead of this result, you had created a more intense explosion than usual? Potentially, you could have injured or even killed yourself and possibly injured some of the people here to watch."

Pointing at the pile of fractured stone, the big woman growled, "Besides that, this is not what I told you to do. Because you are not officially one of my students, I don't have the authority to punish you. But understand this: if you ever again deviate from the instructions I give you, you will receive no further training from me. Is that clear?"

Chastened, Ranma somewhat quietly replied, "Yes, ma'am. It's clear."

Satisfied she had gotten her point across, The Brick then hoisted Ranma up to the harness and fastened her in. Two of the students came up to help swing the boulder. The Brick turned back to putting Noriko through her paces.

Later that evening two girls made their way to the home of Elder Lo Shen. Noriko was exhausted from hard exercise, while Ranma was battered and bruised from having boulders smashed into her. The two girls were leaning against each other for support.

With a groan, Noriko said, "That woman is evil. I swear she enjoys inflicting pain."

Ranma groaned in response. "Stop complaining. At least you get to heal up and still keep the strength build-up. I have to stay like I am. If I use the speeded up ki healing, I lose the toughening I've gained so far."

That evening the two girls just ate and went to bed. They were not in the mood for a lot of conversation. Even without the use of ki to grant instant healing, Ranma's high ki level meant she naturally healed faster than normal people. That healing let Ranma keep the toughness she had gained.

The next day at the clinic was busy without any strange occurrences. When she noticed how slowly Ranma moved, Dr. Rinse asked, "What happened to you?"

"Bukusai Tenketsu training," Was the redhead's brief answer.

Frowning, the doctor asked Ranma to pull up her sleeve. Shaking her head at the sight of the bruises she saw there, the blue haired woman let out a sigh. "I swear, The Brick doesn't understand the concept of moderation when it comes to such training."

She turned and opened the doors to a cabinet and pulled out a jar. "These are bath salts. You should add them to a hot bath after you finish your Breaking Point training. The minerals and herbs in this preparation will penetrate the skin to help heal the bruising and speed the hardening of the skin."

Frowning as she contemplated the jar, the redhead said, "It would have been nice if Brick had mentioned that something like this was available."

With a sigh, the doctor explained, "The Brick is a good person. She is touch fanatical when it comes to training her students, but a good person nevertheless. Something like these bath salts are routinely added to the baths used by her trainees when they go through this training. It probably didn't occur to her that you are not bathing with the other students."

"You said 'something like' the stuff in this jar," the martial artist noted. "How is this different?"

"Oh, this is my own formula," Dr. Rinse explained. "It smells better and feels nicer than what the police trainees use."

"Thanks doc, I'll use it tonight," Ranma said.

The blue haired doctor did think to add, "If you should happen to share your bath, these herb enhanced salts won't hurt anyone else."

When Ranma got to the training field after office hours at the clinic, she had a question.

"Hey Brick?"

The instructor frowned, "What is it, Ranko?"

"Is it possible to do something like that Iron Skin technique with cloth?" She asked.

The instructor nodded. "Yes. Depending on what scrolls you're reading, it's called Iron Cloth or Armor Cloth. Why do you ask?"

"You know that guy that came to town yesterday?" Ranma asked.

"The one who gets lost?"

With a rueful nod, Ranma answered, "That's the one. He has this trick where he can pull his bandana off his head, stiffen it up and throw it like a shuriken. He does a similar trick with his belt. He can take it off and use it like a sword. Then there's another trick he can do with his bandanas besides that."

The police instructor considered that. "The Iron Cloth trick wouldn't be hard to learn since you know the Iron Skin. Since it is outside your body, it takes more ki, but you have plenty. What's the other trick he does with the bandana?"

The redhead looked thoughtful. "When he pulls off a bandana to use as a weapon, there's another one under it. The weird thing about that is that he can keep pulling bandanas off over and over and never seems to run out. If there is a limit to how many he can pull off, he's never admitted it."

The short haired woman scratched her scalp. "That's a new one. I've never heard of anyone doing that before. I'd be curious to observe him doing it. Maybe I could figure it out. Of course it could be a variation on the Hidden Weapons technique, but I've just never heard of it being used like that before."

The young girl shook her head, "I've seen him do it lots of times and I still haven't figured it out yet."

With the basics Ranma had from Iron Skin, it didn't take her long to learn the Iron Cloth technique. When she found out, her reaction was, "Of course! I should have figured that out before."

After that they went back to the training. Ranma went back to being smashed with boulders and Noriko returned to exercising until ready to drop from exhaustion. She had progressed enough that she was now lifting weights. When they got back to Lo Shen's house the Elder insisted that the girls go soak in a hot tub.

Ranma had wanted to protest at sharing a bath with the blonde but she was feeling too tired and painful to make a fuss about it. She reasoned that Noriko was too tired to try anything funny while they were in the bath.

Lo Shen had a Japanese style furo, so there was plenty of room for both girls to soak. Noriko was easing her body into the tub when Ranma shucked out of her clothing. Every part of her body with the exception of her face and breasts was a riot of colors, including purple, yellow, blue, brown and green. Before getting into the tub, Ranma added a measure of the bath salts to the water.

The blonde surveyed the other girl as she lowered herself into the water with a sigh. She winced. "Damn, it hurts just looking at you."

As she leaning her head back against the side of the tub and closed her eyes, Ranma said, "It doesn't feel as bad as it looks. Brick says I'm making progress. One more day, two at the most, and I should be at the level of toughness to blow stuff up without getting hurt. Dr. Rinse said the bath salts she gave me would help heal the bruising and speed the toughening."

Noriko surprised herself saying, "I hope it's over soon. I don't like seeing you get hurt like that."

Ranma opened one eye and looked at the other girl. "You actually care? Wow, I'm touched."

The blonde blushed and admitted, "I don't know if you'll believe this, but after the help you've given me, I'm really coming to think of you as a friend."

The redhead opened the other eye and raised her head to get a better look. "Really?"

Noriko nodded.

The younger girl leaned her head back again but kept her eyes open as if studying the ceiling. After a moment she said, "Thanks for that Noriko. I have to admit that now, with you being a girl and not trying to grope me all the time, you are kind of growing on me."

Noriko hadn't had many friends in her long life. It was with a little apprehension that she asked, "Do you think of me as a friend?"

The younger girl raised her head again. "There's still some caution in my mind. I can't forget that you used to be Happosai. Still, the way you look now and the fact that you're acting different, it's helping to ease the memory. If you keep going the way you've been going, I can definitely see you being a friend."

The blonde let out a sigh. She hadn't realized how much she had feared rejection. She hoped it didn't have anything to do with those sexual thoughts she'd had about Ranma. Her hormones seemed to have leveled out and she wasn't having those lecherous thoughts about her traveling companion.

Well, she amended, she wasn't having as many lecherous thoughts. Most girls would say that Ranma's boy form was a real hunk after all. Her girl form was the stuff of male and not a few female fantasies. At the moment it was hard to feel anything approaching arousal after seeing Ranma's bruised form.

Seeing Ranma looking so abused had awakened another feeling in the former man. It was a feeling she didn't expect. She wanted to comfort the redhead, to rub soothing ointments on her and make her feel better. If she had been asked, she would have sworn she didn't have a maternal, nurturing side.

Considering what Ranma had said about gradually coming to accept her as a friend, Noriko decided not to let the other girl know her thoughts right now. She felt that doing so might ruin the trust that was growing between them. Maybe it would be better to let the friendship grow naturally rather than try to push it.

Over the next two weeks Ranma continued to work for the doctor and continued to learn about medicine. She also learned how to use ki healing on people other than herself. She found that she was greatly enjoying all that she was learning and found that healing people was something she would like to do in the future. She figured that when she got back to Japan she would redouble her efforts in school to try and prepare to study medicine.

On the training field after the doctor's office hours Ranma finished her conditioning for the Breaking Point. She demonstrated her mastery of the technique by Successfully blowing up three boulders without hurting herself or anyone else provided an adequate demonstration of mastery. Brick also taught her the Iron Cloth technique and the Splitting Cat Hairs.

Between working to exhaustion every day and ki healing, Noriko was almost equal to Ranma's strength.

At one point Noriko offered to train Ranma in some of the techniques she knew.

While the redhead was getting to where she felt like she could trust the blonde, she wasn't so sure about her techniques. She said, "If you want to teach me that trick of how to steal a woman's underwear without taking off her outer clothes I don't really want to know that." 

Noriko pointed out, "I actually adapted that from a technique that had nothing to do with perversion."

That was a surprise. "Really? What was the original technique used for?"

The older girl explained, "The original was used to steal weapons and armor from opponents to make them more vulnerable to martial arts techniques such as punches and kicks."

Ranma had to concede that this might be a useful technique. She agreed to learn it. She also learned a variation of Tendo Soun's demon head technique and the trick of projecting a giant image of herself using battle aura. All in all, they both kept busy.

One night during their stay Ranma and Noriko spent the night at the Brick's home because a warrior of the Joketsuzoku who had come to check if the "fugitives" had passed through the village. The warrior had been told that Saotome Ranma and Happosai had not come through the village. The warrior stayed the night at the home of a friend of Po Shen's and left the following day.

One evening Ranma came upon Noriko jotting some things down on a piece of paper. "What're you working on?"

"It was a thought that occurred to me a couple of days ago," the blonde explained. "I don't think I can claim to be Happosai transformed, because the law doesn't recognize the existence of magic. My best bet would be to write a will, leaving all of my belongings to Tendo Noriko."

"Ok, that makes sense, I guess," Ranma admitted.

"But I'm going to do more than just leave all of my old stuff to my new self," Noriko said.

"What else are you going to do?" the redhead wondered.

"The other day, while I was thinking of making things up to you, I thought I might want to resolve some other things as well," the former man explained. "Among other things I will put into Happosai's will that I am going to change Pantyhose Taro's name."

"I hope you aren't going to change it to 'Awesome' Taro," the younger girl said with obvious distaste. "Even if it's what he wants, the name is stupid. That's the kind of name where people who hear it will ask, 'What idiot would name their kid something like that?'"

Nodding, Noriko replied, "I agree. That is why I asked Po to do a search with her computer for a good name. She checked a web site that lists Chinese baby names. The one I picked is Qiang. In Mandarin it means 'strong' or 'powerful.'"

"Ooh, good choice!" Ranma approved. "I don't think even he could complain about that one."

The blonde smiled. "I'm also going to make a few other arrangements. I will be turning Grand Mastery of the Anything Goes School over to me as Noriko. I'm going to will my collection of 'Playboy,' 'Big Uns,' 'Jugs,' 'Bikini Babes Monthly' and all of those other girlie magazines to Soun and Genma, to divide up between themselves as they wish."

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Ranma asked. Her tone was teasing.

"I don't need them any more," Noriko replied with a grin. "After all, if I want to look at a hot female body, I can just look in a mirror."

"Yeah, I can understand that," Ranma said. She had said the same thing a few times herself, but some people (like Akane) didn't believe it.

"I'm going to leave you a bunch of scrolls on pressure points and ki healing," Noriko continued. "If you're going to get into traditional medicine as well as the modern version, those charts will be of great use to you."

"Won't you need them?"

"I was thinking that, when you have time, you could copy those scrolls for me," the older woman explained. "A copy will work as well as an original as long as it is faithfully copied." She didn't add that studying she scrolls close enough to copy them was a good way to learn their contents.

"Ok," Ranma said, feeling touched in spite of herself.

Turning back to her paperwork, Noriko commented, "Right now I'm just jotting down notes. I'll write up the actual will in another day or two. What you will need to do is to say that Happosai gave it to you before he died. I'm making this a handwritten will. We will probably need to get Soun and Genma to verify that it is my handwriting."

"You might need to give them something other than magazines to get them to agree to that," the redhead pointed out.

"Hmm, you may be right," the blonde conceded. "I'll think about it. I do think I have a few scrolls of martial arts techniques I could throw into the deal."

Looking concerned, Ranma said, "Nothing dangerous, I hope."

"No," Noriko reassured her traveling companion. "The scrolls I have in mind are actually jokes. While they look like real techniques, they are impossible to master."

Snickering, Ranma said, "That sounds a little cruel." Her tone was more admiring than critical. "Were you going to give anything to anyone else?"

"I'll need to think it over," the blonde mused. "I'd like to try and match anything I give to the personality of the person who receives it." She went back to her writing.

In the email correspondence there wasn't much new information. Ranma told Nabiki that Ryoga had showed up in the village. Nabiki said she would be on the lookout for him. She hoped to be able to keep him from telling people where Ranma was at least until the travelers could leave the village.

The mercenary girl reported that Kuno had taken off on a mission to rescue the "Pigtailed Goddess" from the Vile Lecher Happosai. When he had tried to carry his bokken through the airport, security guards had refused to allow him to pass. In the resulting fight four guards were injured and they had to throw a net over the deranged kendoist to subdue him. Nabiki had commented that it wouldn't have done Kuno any good if he had gone, because he had only the vaguest of ideas of where to go.

Kuno's incarceration was little more than an inconvenience to the delusional kendoist. The Kuno family lawyers had the boy out on bail within hours of his arrest. However, he was forbidden to leave Tokyo until after his case went to trial. Nabiki's comment on that was that it might have been better if he could have left the city. A Kuno who was wandering around China was a Kuno who wasn't on hand to cause more headaches.

Kodachi had made a pest of herself at the Tendo dojo, dropping by every day. Every time she was told that Ranma-Sama had not returned yet and there was no ETA. Ukyo was almost as bad. While she could believe Ranma had a big enough heart that he would be willing to help someone, she was skeptical of Happosai's motives in asking for such help.

The Nekohanten group of Amazon's had been quiet the whole time and Nabiki said that had her worried. Maybe Cologne was trying to let her people in China handle things on that end but she would have expected the Amazons to at least keep a watch on the dojo.

It seemed that Ms. Hinako was giving Ranma the benefit of the doubt. She was willing to believe that boy really was helping a sick friend. She had phoned the Tendo dojo to tell them that she had saved up the assignments so that Ranma could catch up when he got back, if he wanted to.

Then a new email came.

"To: Undomesticated Equine

From: Frozen Monarch

Subject: Got it!

Your documents are ready. I'm putting them in an envelope and sending them by an express delivery service. You should have them no later than day after tomorrow.

Based on your description of the time it took on the way in, I'm making reservations for a flight back to Tokyo from Beijing. By my estimate, the reserved flight should leave one day after you get to that city. I added that extra day to allow for any problems that might come up on the way.

On the chance that you find a faster way to travel, I'm including a credit card. It's like a gift card with a certain amount of money loaded onto it. There should be enough on it to pay for hotel rooms for two nights as well as meals. This is going on N's tab, by the way. She can settle up with me when she gets back.

Be seeing you soon,

The Frozen Monarch"

Ranma and Noriko exchanged a look then high fived. They had enjoyed their time in the Amazon village, but they were eager to get back to Japan. They had things they wanted to do there.

After Ranma sent a brief acknowledgement, she logged out of the email server and the two girls went downstairs to talk to their hosts.

When Lo Shen saw them she noticed something in their demeanor that suggested they had news to tell. "Did you hear some news from home?"

Ranma nodded. "Our documents are ready. The girl who's taking care of it for us is sending them by an express delivery service. We should have the documents by day after tomorrow."

The Matriarch seemed to think for a moment. "I'll be sad to see you both go. You have been pleasant company. Still, when I agreed to let you stay here, I knew this moment was coming." Impulsively she got up and hugged each girl in turn.

When they disengaged from the hug, Lo Shen told them, "This comes at a good time. We have a shipment of our tea ready to send off. You two can accompany the shipment. That will cut down on your travel time."

Ranma looked at her with a raised eyebrow. The Elder expanded, "We will be sending four crates. Mas Cara will be taking them in the pickup truck down to the next village that has an airstrip. There they will be loaded onto a plane that will be flying direct to Beijing. If I request it, the pilot will let you ride with him. That would free you from hitch hiking and trains."

Noriko smiled. "That would help a lot."

"Well," said Po Shen, standing up. "We need to get down to business." She walked over and reached behind the couch. She pulled out a canvas backpack.

The young woman explained, "My friend Mei Ling recently got a new, fancier backpack by mail order and doesn't need this one anymore. She was willing to let Noriko have it." She handed the backpack to the blonde girl.

Noriko hefted the pack and commented, "There's stuff in this already."

The elder's granddaughter laughed. "When they heard that you had nothing to wear other than borrowed clothing, Condi Shonur's sewing class went a little overboard in making clothes for you. They said it wasn't right that you had to wear clothes borrowed from a boy. They made dresses, undergarments, pants and blouses. In fact they made more than would fit into two packs."

The blonde looked distressed. "I'm grateful for their generosity and hard work, but we need to travel light."

Po Shen sighed. "Actually they were more generous than that. The class also made some clothes for Ranko as well. Since you will be riding the whole way, maybe it wouldn't be too much trouble to take more than you can carry on your backs."

Ranma protested, "What are we going to carry the extra stuff in? Right now we only have the two packs." 

The Matriarch grinned. "I anticipated this and asked around. Our school teacher was planning a trip and mail ordered new luggage. She was wondering what she was going to do with her old luggage. She'd be happy to let you have two of the old suitcases. She's giving you the two biggest ones that should fit all of the extra clothes with no trouble."

The redhead seemed almost ready to cry. "You are being so nice to us. After I met the Joketsuzoku, I'm afraid I had a bad opinion of Amazons. You have shown me that not all Amazon's are bad people."

Lo Shen smiled. "Thank you, Ranko. You shouldn't judge the Joketsuzoku too harshly. They live in more primitive conditions in an area that is hard to get to. They have reasons for acting the way they do. True, many of the reasons for their behavior are no longer relevant in the modern world, but that is a discussion for another time."

The red haired girl shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe the ones I've met are just a bad example and the rest of them are nicer. Personally I think Shampoo is obsessed and Mousse is an idiot. Without a doubt Cologne is a cold, manipulative old bitch."

The Elder considered that for a moment. "While I might not approve the language you used, I can't argue the truth of what you say about them. I think part of the problem they have is that Kho Lon has been in charge so long and so used to getting her way that she gives little consideration to the feelings of the people she deals with. I think Shan Pu has a little bit of that problem herself."

The aquatransexual thought about that. "So, if I'm understanding what you're saying, basically she's a spoiled brat who treats me like a toy her grandmother gave her."

The older woman chuckled. "Well, I wouldn't phrase it that way but I can't really disagree. As to young Mou Tsu, I'm not sure if he qualifies as an idiot. I would have to say he really is a fool, though."

Ranma and Noriko both joined in the laugh.

Noriko took the backpack and the two girls went back up the stairs. Ranma transferred one of the tents to Noriko's pack. They would have to wait until the day they left to pack the food supplies.

The redhead wasn't all that thrilled with the gift of girl's clothing, but it would have been rude to refuse. At that thought she paused. If she was ever going to get her girl form grown up to match her male form, she'd have to spend time as a girl. If she learned how to change at will, there shouldn't be any more accidental changes. Maybe girl clothing wasn't such a bad idea after all – as long as it wasn't too frilly and girlish.

That brought another thought. Back at the Tendo dojo there were boxes of girl clothing she had either never worn or not worn more than to try it on in the store. This was the stuff her mother had bought for Tendo Ranko while trying to make the girl she believed to be Akane's cousin more ladylike. While there was some really frilly stuff, there were also some more basic items that would probably be appropriate for a tomboy.

Yeah! If Ranma did have to spend half or more of her time as a girl, and she was still a guy inside, that would make her girl side a tomboy, wouldn't it? It didn't look like she was going to be the "man among men" her mother wanted. It was a relief at least that Nodoka wasn't going to enforce the contract. Well, that was an issue to worry about after she got back to Japan.

Since they were not actually leaving for at least another day or two, they didn't spend much time with their packs. After they were done they adjourned to the bath. They had gotten in the habit of bathing together. The first time both of them had been too tired to do more than just sit and soak. Now they had developed enough trust in each other that they were willing to do it when they were feeling healthy. By mutual agreement, conversation at these times was kept light, staying away from important topics. Also when they looked at each other, each kept her eyes on the other's face.

After a nice soak, the two girls retired to their beds for the night.

Author's Note: In effect Ranma and Noriko have had a sort of working vacation. Noriko's almost as strong as she wants to be and Ranma has learned some cool techniques. Soon they will be heading back to Japan and Ranma will have to face up to the fiancée mess again.


	11. Chapter 11 Getting Ready to Go Home

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga. This chapter contains scenes with WAFF.

Chapter 10

Getting Ready to Go Home

The following day at the clinic, Dr Rinse had apparently been informed that her helper would be leaving soon. She called the young redhead into her office.

Upon invitation, Ranma sat in a chair opposite the doctor. The older woman said, "Ranko, I've heard that you will be leaving in a day or two. I'll admit I had reservations about having a martial artist as an assistant, but you've been great. You have been very good with the patients and you have learned a lot. You have natural aptitude for medicine."

She paused a moment. "I would really like to hope you choose to study medicine as your life's work. But no matter what you decide to do, I want you to stay in touch." She handed over a card.

The doctor went on, "Please write to me. I confess that I'm tempted to get a computer just so I can exchange emails with you."

Smiling, Ranma shook her head. "Get one if that's what _you _want, not for me. There's a lot of other useful things you can do with a computer."

Dr. Rinse nodded. "I know. I've been thinking about getting one for a long time. Exchanging emails with you may well be the final argument that gets me to actually commit to buying one."

The redhead smiled wider. "That would be great. I don't own a computer myself, but I'm sure I could talk Nabiki into letting me borrow hers. If not I could use one at the library for emails."

Grabbing a piece of paper and a pen, Ranma wrote quickly and handed it to the doctor. "This is my email address. When you do get a computer, email me."

The Doctor reached over to a shelf and pulled out a rolled up piece of stiff paper that was tied with a red ribbon. She handed it to Ranma, saying, "This is to help you in your studies."

Untying the ribbon, Ranma unrolled the paper. It turned out to be a poster sized copy of the ki flows chart she had been studying. While moved by the gift, she protested, "Won't you need this?"

"Don't worry," assured the doctor. "This is a copy. I can afford to part with it for a student of your talent."

Ranma stared at the chart for a time before she said, "I don't know what to say. Thanks, doc." She started to roll the chart back up.

The older woman smiled then picked a small stack of handwritten sheets of paper. Handing them over to Ranma, the doctor explained, "This is a list of books that I think would help you. Many of them you can borrow from libraries. Some of them you can buy from a college or University bookstore. There are also a few you're only likely to find in a store that specializes metaphysics and the occult."

The redhead's eyes went wide at the mention of an occult book store. "Odd that you should mention that. Elder Lo Shen has told me that a person who owns such a store that might be able to help me with my curse."

The doctor nodded. "Then you have another reason to seek that person out."

Ranma got up and walked around the desk to give the doctor a hug. The moment didn't last long, because at that moment a man rushed into the office with a bad cut on his arm.

After office hours Ranma went to the police station. She found that the class of trainees had arranged to throw a small party. There was food and drink (fruit juice) and some gifts were given. The Brick gave Ranma two scrolls for martial arts techniques.

When Ranma and Noriko got back to Lo Shen's house they found that the mail had come and they didn't get anything. So it appeared that they would be there for at least another day.

The following day both went back to their accustomed activities but shortly after lunch they were interrupted. A man on a motor scooter had arrived in the village. The word was that the express delivery service had flown in with a plane to the nearest village with an air strip. The pilot had turned the envelope over to a courier who made regular trips between the villages in the area.

Word was given to both of the travelers. At the end of the work shift at the clinic Ranma hugged Dr. Rinse. She turned to Comb, and in a serious tone ordered, "You take care of the doc. I hope soon to hear that she's making do with some other assistant while you're at University working on your own medical degree."

The tall young man impulsively swept the petite redhead into a hug. He commented, "Right now I don't care if you really are a guy. A hug seems the best way to say goodbye. I'll take care of Dr. Rinse and work hard on becoming a Doctor myself. It's been great working with you."

Ranma hugged the young man back. She admonished, "Just don't expect me to kiss you or nothin'. A hug is as girlish as I go."

Comb laughed as he disengaged from the hug. "That's fine. You'll have to understand that I have a hard time thinking of you as a guy. After all, I've only seen you in girl form."

The redhead nodded. "That's true." She handed him a card and said, "This has my email address. I know you don't have a computer right now, but you'll probably want to get one when you go to the University."

He frowned. "Don't you borrow a computer now?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I'm not sure how I'll do it, but one of these days I'm gonna get my own computer. Until I do, I can use a computer at the library or at school."

Comb shook his head. "I wish I could help you with that, but my money for the university is pretty tightly budgeted."

The redhead held up her hands in a dismissive gesture. "Don't worry about it. I'll work something out. I'll probably be in debt to my friend Nabiki for the rest of my life, but I can live with that. She's been a lot nicer to me lately."

She stepped back and said, "I've got to get back to Lo Shen's. Now that I know I'm leaving tomorrow, I need to finish packing."

He inclined his head in a bow then looked up and watched as she left.

Ranma went by the police training facility and was given a lot of hugs and handshakes from the students and many of the regular officers. From The Brick Ranma got a handshake that would have crushed the hand of a weaker person. The muscular woman said, "Kid… Ranko, you're Ok. If you're ever in the area again, look me up. We can spar."

The red haired girl grinned, "I'd like that." The Brick was one of the best sparring partners she'd ever met. She wasn't as strong as Ryoga, but a lot smarter, faster and had a seemingly never ending source of new and interesting techniques.

As they walked back to Lo Shen's house, Ranma commented, "These are good people. Why is it they seem so much nicer and saner than Cologne's tribe?"

Noriko shrugged and said, "I don't know. I tend to think you have likely only met the more extreme members of Cologne's tribe. Not everyone there is a warrior. Arguably the Elders of the Joketsuzoku are probably the most extreme of the lot."

"Humph!" Ranma shook her head. "What I want to know is how I'm going to get Cologne off my back. I bet Shampoo would give up if Cologne quit."

The blonde frowned. "I'm not so sure of that. Shampoo is pretty stubborn. If she thought she was losing her Great Grandmother's help, she might get desperate."

"That's just great!" Ranma sounded depressed. "I don't love Shampoo. I could maybe see her as a friend if she stopped treating like a prize to be won. But until she can show me a little more respect, I don't think I even like her."

Noriko felt a small thrill go through her as she heard that. She still teased, "Are you sure? Shampoo's really pretty and _very_ sexy."

The redhead shuddered. "I may have felt tempted when she first started doing all of that 'Wo Ai Ne' crap, but the longer I've known her the less I like her."

Letting no trace of it show on her face, Noriko was cheering inside. She only commented, "Now if you could only convince Mousse of that, maybe he'd concentrate his attention on Shampoo and leave you alone."

Ranma snorted. "He's welcome to her. If there was some way I could do it, I'd give her to him – gift wrapped."

In a thoughtful tone Noriko said, "I'll give what help I can. It's possible that the best way would be to work on the Council of Elders."

Ranma stopped and considered that. Likely if anyone had the power to rein in the Matriarch it would be the council. She asked, "What did you have in mind?"

Noriko replied, "After you beat Herb and killed Saffron, the Council members can't be too thrilled by the idea of a male of your abilities living in the village. I suspect they would be afraid that they would have to treat you differently than the other men there."

The younger girl's eyes went wide. "If the rest of the men in the village saw me being treated better than them, it could make them unhappy with the way _they_ are being treated. I could threaten Cologne or the other elders that I would get the men stirred up enough to demand equal treatment. Maybe they would give up on me."

The blonde looked at her companion in surprise. That was a smarter idea than she was used to hearing from Ranma. She said, "Lo Shen does talk to the Joketsuzoku elders from time to time. It might be a good idea if she could drop hints on that subject."

A huge grin spread across the redhead's elfin looking features. "It may not be a quick fix to the problem with Shampoo, but at least it is a plan with chance at success."

When they got to the house, Ranma told Lo Shen of the idea of stirring up the men in the other village. The elder nodded. "Did you know that men of the Joketsuzoku village are forbidden to visit us here? The Council of Elders is afraid that the men would be 'contaminated' by our ideas of equality. Yes, I think your idea has merit."

She paused in thought. "After you are back in Japan, I will call Elder Soap and tell her that you were here. She'll be furious, of course, but there won't be anything she can do about it. When I'm telling her about your having been here, I'll make a point of telling her what an independent spirit you are and how you would never be happy living in their village. She may be set in her ways, but she's not stupid. She should get the hint."

Noriko nodded. "When we get back to Japan I think I should be the one to talk to Cologne. It would sound more convincing coming from another person than from Ranma himself."

Ranma walked up to Lo Shen and took her hand. "Thank you, Elder. You have given Noriko and me more help than I would ever have expected in this part of the world. Lately most of the people I meet seem more interested in what they can get from me than in what they can do for me. It's nice to meet people who are genuinely helpful." 

Lo Shen bowed her head. "On behalf of all Chinese Amazons I apologize for the way you were treated. That Kiss of Death is a barbaric custom that has no place in the modern world. Kho Lon and Shan Pu then compounded an already bad situation by treating you like they would one of the men of her own village."

The blonde put in, "You should know that the way Amazons treated Ranma is not the only example of what she was talking about. I'm as guilty of it as anyone. I saw Ranma as the heir to my martial arts school and never thought to consider what her/his feelings were on the subject."

She paused before continuing, "You know, it's ironic that it took getting physically younger to make me start acting and thinking in a more mature way. I admit it. I was a selfish, spoiled brat who was more interested in getting his own way than anything else."

When she saw Ranma nodding her head she said in a grumpy tone, "You didn't have to agree so fast."

Ranma shrugged but there was the hint of a smile on her face.

Lo Shen chose that moment to interrupt. She reached down beside her chair and grasped the handle of a somewhat battered looking suitcase. She pulled it out and said, "The clothes made by the sewing class are already inside. I also got you this."

"This" turned out to be a cardboard tube with two cardboard end caps. On the side of the tube there was a rough-looking rectangular patch that looked as if a mailing label had been torn off. The elder explained, "Rin Se told me about the ki path chart. This will allow you to carry it without having to get creases in it from folding. As you can see, I'm re-using an old mailing tube. I had received some papers in this and never bothered to throw it out."

Ranma smiled warmly. "I'm sure it will work just fine."

The elder said, "Mas Cara will be driving the pickup truck. It will be carrying four crates of our tea blend. She will be stopping by in the morning to pick you up. You can ride up front with her while your luggage can go in the back with the crates."

She picked up an envelope from the table and handed it to Noriko, saying, "This is a letter to the pilot of the plane that will be carrying the tea to Beijing. This instructs him to take you with him on his flight and drop you off at the airport."

She handed over a much larger envelope and said, "This is the package sent by Miss Tendo Nabiki in Japan." She handed it to Ranma.

Ranma opened the envelope and emptied the contents onto the table. She picked up the passport and handed it to Noriko. Ranma looked at a plastic rectangle with rounded corners that had also fallen out of the envelope. She saw the name Tendo Noriko on it and handed that to the blonde as well. There were a few other documents along with plane tickets on JAL.

Among the documents there was a computer printed letter. She read it.

"Ranma,

Here are Noriko's documents. I have included the credit card and plane tickets. This should be all you need to get back to Japan.

Your Dad is starting to make a fuss. He's been going on about "What is taking that ungrateful boy so long?" Your Mom looks like she's about ready to draw her sword and do something painful to him.

Nobody seems to really be thinking too much about the fact that H is now Noriko. I confess I have a hard time accepting that the shriveled up pervert is now the pretty girl in the picture you sent. I don't think anyone has the least idea of how to deal with her. I'm just worried that my Dad and yours may think Noriko is weak now and they can pull some kind of silly revenge plot on her. Just be careful when you get here.

Nabiki"

Ranma handed the letter to Noriko and said, "I swear my Pop keeps getting dumber all the time."

The blonde looked over the letter and commented, "If they are hoping for revenge they are in for a disappointment. Thanks to the Brick's training and rapid ki healing, I'm nearly as strong as your female body right now. With a little more training I may be able to get as strong as your male body."

The redhead frowned as she said, "I won't deny they did have real complaints, but you aren't that person anymore. You've satisfied me that you really want to make up for the way you were when you were a man. I won't let them hurt you."

The blonde inclined her head in an expression of gratitude. She added, "I wonder what Akane is thinking."

Ranma let out a snort. "Knowing her, she probably thinks that you and I have been doing all manner of perverted things together. Likely she thinks you've been having kinky sex with my male form the whole time."

Silently Noriko thought, "_I wish_." Out loud she said, "If that is what she's thinking, you could have a flight on Air Mallet in store for you."

Both Lo Shen and Po Shen looked confused. Ranma looked depressed. She said, "Yeah, you're probably right about that."

Noriko sighed. She looked depressed as well. She asked, "Have you given any thought to what married life with Akane would be like?"

The redheaded girl frowned. "You mean like always acting as if I'm afraid of my own shadow? Having to be careful of every word I say for fear my wife will get the wrong idea about something and beat me with the mallet, maybe kill me?"

The blonde winced at the description. That was pretty much how she imagined married life would be for Ranma and Akane. She asked, "Ranma, do you want to be the abused spouse?"

Angrily the younger girl demanded, "What choice do I have? If I tell my parents I don't want to get married to Akane they'll pull out the honor argument. It's an arrangement that was made before I was even born and yet I'm honor bound to marry that violent tomboy."

Noriko looked down at the floor for a moment. "When a woman is getting beaten by her husband, the advice always given is for her to get away from him. Usually she gets beaten because her husband is bigger and stronger than she is. Some people don't want to believe there can be such a thing as an abused husband."

The redhead frowned. Noriko was going somewhere with this but she wasn't sure where. The older girl said, "The usual reason that a man can be abused is because he can't bring himself to hit his wife in his own defense. It almost always happens with a husband who is strong and could defend himself against almost any attacker. He gets abused because he doesn't want to hurt his wife by fighting back."

The blonde continued, "I know one of Akane's chief complaints about the training you try to give her is that you don't take her serious as a martial artist. You only dodge, you never hit her. We both know that her martial arts skills are pathetic compared to yours. If you were willing to defend yourself, she'd end up battered and bruised."

Ranma shook her head and replied, "I can hold back better than that. I could hit her without doing serious damage. I'm not sure I understand the point you're trying to make, Noriko."

Noriko scowled. "I'm not sure what the point is at the moment. Tell me, if you wanted to, could you block or dodge the mallet strikes?"

"Yeah," was the answer. "Trouble with that is that if I dodge, she could hit someone behind or beside me. Akane's not always too careful about who is standing near me."

The blonde next asked, "Could you take the mallet away from her?"

Ranma felt like she wanted to growl. "Yes, I could, but what good would that do? The mallet is a ki attack. If I took one away from her, she could make another one."

The former man thought about it some more. Even if she was interested in Ranma for herself, she wasn't going to be like the others. Wanting to put his happiness ahead of her own, she asked, "What about the other Tendo girls? As I understand it the honor agreement only specifies that a Saotome child must marry a Tendo child. How would you feel about marrying Kasumi or Nabiki?"

Looking even more depressed, Ranma said, "Nabiki is in love with money. Even if we've been getting along better since the whole wedding mess, I don't think getting married to her would work. Kasumi… doesn't want me, even if Dr. Tofu isn't around anymore. As for me, I'm too young, she even said herself."

Shaking her head, she sighed. "If I could pick any of the Tendo girls, she'd be the one. But it wouldn't work with her either."

Now curious, Noriko asked, "Why wouldn't it work with Kasumi?"

The redhead shook her head. "I feel about her more like she's a sister and I'm sure she looks at me like a brother. If she had to, she'd go through with it because of the honor agreement. The trouble is that she'd look at it as a sacrifice. She'd pretend to be happy, but she'd always wonder what it would be like if she'd married Dr. Tofu."

Noriko nodded as she took that in. Then she summed up, "So you don't think you could be happy with any of the Tendo girls. Ukyo is just a friend, you don't like Shampoo and Kodachi is crazy. Anyone else your father may have made agreements with you don't know them and don't feel any attachment."

"Yeah," was Ranma glum answer to that summary.

The former man walked over and put a hand on Ranma's shoulder. "I've come to think of you as a friend, someone whose happiness I care about. Let me think on this situation and see what I can come up with. I think you should give more serious consideration to the other Tendo girls. A marriage to one of them might not be emotionally fulfilling, but neither of them is likely to physically abuse you."

"There is that," the redhead conceded.

Lo Shen cleared her throat. "I… had no idea your situation at home was so bad. I had thought that you were eager to go back. I hesitate to say this but if you wanted to stay, I'm sure the village could come up with the money to send you to University to study medicine."

Ranma looked at her for a moment. "As tempting as that sounds, I can't. I'm not gonna run away from my problems. That's something my worthless father would do. I have to face my problems and figure out a way to solve them. The real problem is that my father made so many honor commitments that there's no way I could fulfill them all."

Her expression grim, Ranma said, "At the moment I can only think of two ways to resolve every one of theses problems, including all of the engagements. One of them would be to commit seppuku. While that would satisfy the honor debts, it wouldn't make anybody happy. Well, it might make Akane happy to finally be free of the pervert she thinks I am, but I doubt even she wants to see me dead. The other way would be to renounce the Saotome family name and become a ronin. Since all of the honor debts are on Saotome Ranma they would no longer valid if I'm not a Saotome anymore."

With a deep sigh she said, "I'm sure you can understand why I'm not happy about that idea either; it would still feel like running away. I'm going to keep that as a final escape clause. If I can't find an honorable way to resolve the fiancé mess and all the other honor commitments, then that's my final option."

She turned from her study of the floor to look at former man. "Noriko, you said you would think about my problems. Help me to find a third option."

After a moment she said, "How am I going to tell Pops I want to be a doctor and just do martial arts as a hobby? He'll go on some kind of rant about how ungrateful I am, how disgraceful and such. Then there's Mom. I have to wonder if her ideas of manliness require me to be a martial artist."

Noriko said in a gentle tone, "Most mothers would be bursting with pride if their son announced his wish to be a doctor."

The red haired girl snorted. "I've always thought Mom must be at least a little crazy to marry a guy like Pops. I just hope she's not a lot crazy. If she says I'm unmanly for wanting to make martial arts a sideline, she may demand I commit seppuku."

The blonde looked puzzled. "I thought she tore up the contract and burned it."

"She did," confirmed the younger girl. "But it's pretty obvious she hasn't forgotten it. Any time I do something she doesn't like, she starts playing with that damn sword, like she's thinking about drawing it and says, 'That's not very manly, son.' She'll do that even if what she's objecting to has nothing to do with anything anyone else would consider manly, or womanly for that matter."

Sighing again, Ranma added, "Since Mom did burn the contract, I don't have any reason to give in to a demand that I kill myself. I don't know why she can't understand that threats aren't necessary. Ever since I met up with her again, all I really wanted from her was her approval."

Her manner changed to show more determination. "If she does demand that I commit seppuku, then I guess I'll stop being a Saotome and come back here to take Lo Shen's offer."

Po Shen shook her head. "As much as we'd appreciate having you here, I hope it doesn't come to that. If it does, we won't care if you are a Saotome or not."

"Thanks Po." Ranma stood up. "Come on, Noriko. We've got some packing to do."

When they got up to the guest room, Noriko said, "I've got a confession to make."

Ranma rolled her eyes. "Another one?"

The former man nodded. After a pause she said, "I'm rich."

"Huh?" Ranma wasn't quite sure she heard what she thought she did. "Did you just say you're rich?"

"Yes."

The red haired girl considered that for a time. She placed the suitcase and the mailing tube on the bed and said, "I'm guessing there's a story behind that. Why don't you tell that story while I pack. After that, you can tell me how that changes my situation. I'm guessing you have some idea that your wealth might help me in some way. You can explain that as well."

She paused a moment and said, "Now I understand what you were up to with that will. I thought you were just leaving yourself all your scrolls and books and stuff. If you had money as Happosai, you need to get that transferred."

She picked up the mailing tube and pulled one of the end caps off.

Noriko started. "Well, as to how I got rich, that's not all that much of a story. It comes of living a very long time. In my travels I didn't find a magic artifact that would remove or suppress my curse, but I did find some old treasures. About 150 years ago I used the money from some of those treasures to buy several parcels of land in the Tokyo area. At the time they were cheap. Not all of them became really valuable, and I've sold those for what profit I could get. Some now have really big buildings on them that bring in enormous amounts of money in rent from the businesses that have their offices there."

Ranma nodded as she slid the rolled-up ki flows chart into the tube. She could easily imagine someone doing what Noriko had described.

The blonde continued, "For a lot of the money I don't even need the will. I've been having the real estate management companies that collect the rents deposit the money into Swiss bank accounts. Those are accessed by use of account numbers and not by a signature. Remember, those accounts have been around for more than a century so the bankers don't expect the original depositor to claim them."

Ranma set the tube aside and picked up her pack. She didn't say anything but, from her attitude, it was clear that she was listening intently.

The older girl explained, "The bankers believe that the accounts are being maintained by descendants of the original depositor. I set up passwords to use so that 'Members of my family' could access the money. Using those passwords, I could be Tendo Noriko or even Saotome Ranma and still get the money." She silently added in thought, "_Or maybe even Saotome Noriko_."

Noriko continued, "The Swiss bank accounts hold the majority of my money, but not all. There is also the matter of the ownership of those parcels of land. It is the will that will nail down that ownership."

The pigtailed martial artist thought about that and commented, "I've seen things on the news where estates of really wealthy people get fought over a lot. Do you think that might happen with this one?"

Shaking her head, the blonde said, "When a wealthy person dies, the ones usually fighting over the will are the members of their family, children, grandchildren and so forth. Some of those fights can be bitter and really vicious. Happosai had no living relatives that I'm aware of. And even if there are, you would have to really dig into history to find them."

"As for the real estate company that manages my properties, I doubt they will make too much of a fuss," the older woman said. "When I was Happosai, I was content to leave the management of the land to the company. If I tell them I plan to leave things mostly as they have been, they are unlikely to object to the inheritance."

As Ranma began stuffing clothes in her pack, she said, "Alright, I can understand that. What I _don't_ understand is why you were sponging off the Tendo's if you were rich."

The former man responded, "You've seen how I used to live. I didn't need a lot of money. Part of the reason I was living off Soun was because I had hopes that he would grow a backbone and try to throw me out. Of all my students, you are the only one who was willing to defy me. I admit that I was disappointed when Soun turned out to be such a wimp."

The redhead nodded to acknowledge what Noriko had said. She looked in her pack and commented, "I guess we'll have to ask Elder Lo Shen to give us some food for travel supplies before we leave in the morning. We might not always be somewhere where we can buy food when we get hungry."

Noriko nodded, "Good idea." She paused a moment before continuing, "You probably wonder why I used peeping on women in bath houses and stealing food and other such things as part of my training of your father and Soun."

Ranma draped a pair of pants and a red shirt over the back of the chair. She planned to wear them in the morning. "Yeah, I did sort of question what that was supposed to teach them."

The older girl explained, "That wasn't really meant to be teaching. It was more of a test of their character. I kept hoping that they would protest or refuse to do the things I asked of them. They seemed to think that if they did those things, I would share with them the ultimate secrets of the Anything Goes School."

"Did you?" Ranma wanted to know.

The older girl shook her head. "No. It was because they went along with all of that crap that I never gave them the deepest secrets of the School. I did teach them some advanced techniques and let them believe that those _were_ the secrets. They weren't."

Ranma took a look around to make sure she hadn't forgotten to pack anything. When she was satisfied that the only things left out were those items they would be using or wearing in the morning, she asked, "So they failed your test of character?"

The blonde nodded. "You might be interested to know that you passed. You refused to help me steal lingerie. You refused to compromise your principles. You have much more honor than your father ever did." 

Ranma considered that. "Does that mean you will teach me all of your secret techniques?"

"If you want me to," was the answer.

The redhead nodded. "And that's the important question. If I study to be a doctor, then I won't be able to spend as much time on martial arts as I have been. I have to wonder if I would really need your secret techniques. Would any of those secrets cure people of diseases or heal wounds?"

Noriko smiled. "Actually, some of them would. Besides ki healing, I know some magic healing techniques that the original Noriko taught me."

"Would you teach them to me?"

The older girl said, "I'd be happy to."

A thought occurred to the pigtailed martial artist. "We've spent all of this time talking about my problems and what I'm going to do with my future. Now that you're young again, you have pretty much a whole new lifetime ahead of you. What do you want to do with _your_ future?" 

The blonde looked surprised at being asked. "Well, I have to work at making up for some of the things that I did while I was Happosai. Though, sad to say, many of the people I owe apologies to are dead now. After that, maybe I'll open a dojo of my own. When I'm being serious about it, I can be a pretty good teacher."

She paused again then snapped her fingers. "There was a point I was going to make about having money. It was about Ukyo. I was thinking I could buy a new Yattai to replace the one Genma took. That should clear the engagement issue with her."

"That's a generous offer," Ranma allowed. "But I'm not sure it would count as me resolving my problem if you're paying for it."

"What?" Noriko protested, "Can't I help out a friend?"

The redhead shook her head, "Like I said, generous offer. I don't know, though."

In a pleading tone the blonde said, "Please! At least think about it. I literally have more money than I know what to do with. It would do my heart good to help you with this. If you want you could even think of it as a loan to be paid back when you become a doctor." In a sly tone she added, "Doctors do usually make pretty good money."

Ranma was tempted. Finally she thought of a compromise. "How about this? I can tell Ucchan that I have the means to get her a new yattai. If she's willing to go along with it, then I'll agree to the loan."

"Fair enough," Noriko agreed.

Since they had come in earlier than usual it was time for dinner now. They went downstairs. After they finished eating, Lo Shen gave the two girls a box of canned foods and other supplies to eat on the trip.

After putting the supplies in their packs the girls adjourned to Po Shen's room to use the computer. Ranma sent one final email to inform Nabiki they had received the travel documents and credit card and would be leaving the next morning. Since they planned to catch the plane at the time listed on the tickets, they didn't mention that they would be flying most of the way to Beijing. It wouldn't make a difference in when they arrived back in Japan.

They went to bed early so they could be up early the next morning. Before drifting off to sleep a thought came to Noriko on how she could, at least in some small measure, make things up to the women she had groped. She could use some of that money that was just sitting in banks to set up shelters for victims of sexual assault. She'd mention it to Ranma later, perhaps while they were on the way back. It was likely they would be too busy in the morning.

Author's Note: Ranma and Noriko found kindness and help in an unexpected place. While sad to leave their new friends, they have business to settle back in Japan. Whether or not all of Ranma's problems can be resolved remains to be seen. Noriko has dedicated herself to furthering Ranma's happiness with no regard to her own. _Is _there any happiness waiting for Noriko when they get back into their home territory? Stay tuned.


	12. Chapter 12 Back to Japan

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga. This Chapter contains some WAFF.

Chapter 11

Back to Japan

When they got up, Ranma and Noriko dressed and packed everything except the clothes they were wearing. They put on their packs, and then Ranma picked up one suitcase, Noriko picked up the other. Noriko was able to put the tube with the ki flow chart through one of the straps on Ranma's pack. When they got down the stairs they found Lo Shen and Po Shen waiting for them. They had gotten up early to see their guests off.

They ate a cold breakfast that had been prepared the day before. There were hugs all around.

As they stood in the living room to give their final goodbyes, Ranma took off the curse locking ring and held it out to give to Lo Shen. The elder said, "That's alright. You can keep it."

"Huh." Ranma was confused. "Won't you need it?"

The Elder explained, "We don't need these rings so much in our village anymore. As Po probably told you, most families in town have at least one of these rings and some have more than one. While it is unlikely we will need a locking ring, if we do we can borrow one from friends. Since your girl form is younger than your male form, you might want to use the ring to lock yourself as a female at times to get your forms caught up with each other."

Ranma frowned while considering that, thinking about the sorceress she was going to visit when they got back to Japan. "Would it still work if I got my curse trigger changed to will power?"

The older woman smiled and said, "Yes, it would still work. Because it a _curse locking _ring it will only serve to lock you in your female form, but at least you wouldn't need to worry about spontaneously changing to male at random moments of inattention."

The redhead pocketed the ring and said, "When I get back to Japan I'll get a chain so I can wear it around my neck when I don't have it on my finger. That way I'll never lose it."

The Matriarch nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."

The matriarch sighed. "In the short time you have been here I've started to feel toward you two as if you are more granddaughters. I want to know what happens to you so, please don't forget to write."

Ranma wiped at the corner of her eye and said, "I think we'd better get going or I'm going to start crying. I don't want to do that." She was still laboring under the mistaken belief that it was unmanly to cry.

Po Shen came forward and hugged both of the travelers. She said, "I'll miss you two. You're friends now. As for writing, you could save the price of a stamp and email me. I can share anything you send with Grandma. I'm still working on getting her comfortable with computers."

"That sounds like a great idea," the red haired girl agreed.

Lo Shen refrained from comment as the two girls walked out the door. Parked out in front of the house there was a pickup truck that looked to be about 40 years old. In spite of the vehicle's age it appeared to have been lovingly maintained and was in excellent condition. A woman with gray-fringed green hair, who appeared about the same age as the truck, stood there.

Ranma asked, "Are you Mas Cara?"

The older woman nodded. She flipped up the corner of a tarp that covered the truck bed in back. "Yes, that's me. You can put your stuff back here."

When the girls had placed their belongings in the back of the truck the older woman fastened the corner of the tarp down. "Good! That's got the cargo secure. Let's go."

She got in the driver's side of the truck's cab, while Ranma and Noriko climbed in the passenger side. There was enough room for all three of them. Although standard equipment for trucks of this vintage didn't include safety belts, someone had installed them. Mas explained, "The road gets kind of bumpy in places."

The green haired woman started the engine. It would appear that the truck had been lovingly maintained indeed. It started up quickly and ran with a low throated purr. The driver checked to make sure her passengers were secure in their seats then put the truck in gear.

Mas Cara was not much of conversationalist. The majority of the trip was made in silence. She would make an occasional comment about the route and warned when they were coming up on one of the bumpy sections. Having heard the stories of her passengers through rumor and gossip, she didn't feel compelled to chatter about it while they were driving.

When they got to the next village they went straight to the airstrip. There was only one runway. The plane they were going to take was parked to one side of the strip. This plane was also old, but like the truck it had been expertly maintained. From what Lo Shen had told them this plane was used for a regular cargo service that made routine stops all around the region. The pilot appeared to be a man in his 50's who kept in good shape. When Ranma handed him the letter from Lo Shen he looked at it with a sour expression.

He shook his head then his expression cleared. The plane did have seats for passengers; it was just that he generally didn't like carrying them. He couldn't refuse them, though. The Amazons had been customers for decades. Also, it didn't hurt that the passengers that the Elder asked him to carry were two beautiful young women.

The pilot told the girls, "You can call me Chen." He was surprised when the girls offered to help out by carrying the crates to the planes. The younger of the two didn't look strong enough to even be carrying the backpack she was wearing.

His eyes went wide when he saw the redhead and blonde each pick up one of the crates. They didn't even seem to be straining under the weight. Well, he guessed that he wouldn't be asking either of the girls for a date when they got to the capitol. It was just as well, he supposed. They were both rather young for him.

Since the girls were so willing to help out, he was willing to accept that help. He directed each girl where to take the crate she was carrying. After the crates were set down in the cargo space at the rear of the plane he set to work securing them with straps while the girls went to get the other two crates.

After they had brought the second pair of crates in and set them down, the girls secured their luggage in some cargo netting in the back area. While they were doing that, Chen told them, "We'll be in the air at lunch time. I'm sorry I wasn't expecting passengers, so I don't have any food for you."

Ranma smiled cutely. She said, "That's no problem. We brought some food with us. We were expecting to supply our own food on the trip. As it is, we're going to have to conserve our money when we get to Beijing. We were originally expecting to hitch hike part of the way and go by train the rest of the way. This will get us where we need to go much faster."

He nodded. "That was very generous of the Elder to send you with me."

The redhead shrugged. "I think it was just a coincidence that the timing worked out like it did. We were lucky to be able to leave when they were sending a shipment of tea. If things had worked out differently, we might have ended up walking to this town to try and hitch a ride from someone who was going the way we wanted."

"Hmm." He grunted. "At least this will get you to the capitol quicker."

Noriko said, "We have tickets for a flight to Tokyo. Getting to Beijing faster means we'll have time to kill when we get there. I guess we can do some sight seeing or we could try to arrange an earlier flight."

The younger girl looked thoughtful. "Getting to Tokyo earlier might be a good idea. It would be before people are expecting us and we might be able to do some stuff before my family starts up their usual crap."

The blonde nodded. "Very well. When we get to the airport, we'll have to talk to the people at JAL about getting an earlier flight."

With the cargo secured and the passengers in their seats, the pilot began his checklist for departure. When he finished, he radioed for clearance and received it. He taxied the plane onto the runway and took to the air. When he was in the air he put the plane on course and turned on the autopilot. Although the plane was old, he had kept it well maintained and he had installed a newer autopilot.

He turned to his passengers and told them, "Ladies, we're on our way. I'm sorry if I gave you the idea that I wasn't glad to have you traveling with me. You can just chalk it up to me being a grumpy old man."

Noriko laughed heartily at that. "I can understand being a grumpy old man."

Chen looked at the young blonde. He ventured the only thing he could think of, "You took care of your grandfather?"

Still laughing she replied, "Something like that. I know what old people can be like. You aren't that old yet." She couldn't tell the man what she really did know of how old men were. She had an unusual perspective on that situation.

The pilot smiled. They both seemed like nice girls. As the flight progressed they chatted about thing of no consequence. After a while Ranma got up from her seat and pulled a book out of her suitcase. It was a book on herbal medicine that Dr. Rinse had decided to give to Ranma to further her studies. Originally, Ranma had tried to avoid accepting the gift, because she felt the doctor would need it in the future. The young lady's plan was foiled when the good doctor revealed that the book, like the ki chart was an extra copy she had stowed away on her shelf.

Noriko took a martial arts technique scroll to study and Chen listened to music on a portable cassette player he had in the cockpit. They ate lunch partway through the flight. It was fairly late when they landed in Beijing. The airport where they landed was the same one where they were scheduled to leave in four days.

The two girls helped offload the cargo then bid the pilot farewell. They then made their way over to the terminal building and went to the JAL ticket office. They showed their tickets and spoke to the clerk. It took some argument, but they were able to exchange their tickets for new ones on a flight that was leaving the following evening.

As they walked away from the ticket office Noriko stifled a laugh. The poor man at the counter of the ticket office had put up a token resistance but had fallen under the spell of Ranma's devastatingly cute smile. Not to be outdone, Noriko had added her own smile and the ticket agent's eyes had taken on an almost glazed look. After that, he had expended every effort to find them two seats on an earlier flight. Now Noriko could see why Ranma found it so much fun scamming sweets from vendors.

From there they found their way to a hotel that had a room available. It was nearly midnight when they finally got to bed. The next morning they ate a hearty breakfast in the restaurant then went to a bank. Noriko got the Chinese bank to contact her bank in Switzerland and transfer funds to her. Then they went to the airport where they rented a locker to store their belongings until they were ready to leave.

They spent the rest of the day moving around the city, basically sightseeing. Ranma thought about looking for a computer at a library to send an email to let Nabiki know she and Noriko would be arriving early, but decided against it. There might be an advantage to being back in Japan before any of the "Nerima Wrecking Crew" knew they were there.

That evening Ranma and Noriko went to the air terminal to pick up their luggage and to get their belongings cleared through airport security. Nabiki had the foresight to have the stamps for the trip from Japan to China already marked in the Passport. This was so the officials at the airport wouldn't get suspicious and check on them. Instead they just stamped their passports for the return flight.

The plane took off at 11:05 PM. Due to the late hour, Ranma and Noriko both slept the whole way just as they had on the trip out from Japan. The flight attendant woke them when they were coming in for a landing. After clearing their belongings through customs, they went in search of a hotel.

After arriving in their room, Ranma changed back to male form. When he did so he confessed to Noriko, "I had spent so much time in girl form, I was worried that I'd get a period. I've been through them before but they're never pleasant. If I'm male at 'that time of the month' I still tend to feel sort of sick and moody. Nothing like how I feel if I'm female at the time. I've also found out something about that. If I actually start a period, I have to stay female through the whole thing. Changing to male during a period makes me so sick that I have to change back to female right away."

Noriko shook her head. "Thanks for reminding me. Since I was a baby when I became male, I was too young to ever have gone through a period. Considering the physical age of my body, I'm suspecting my first one will be bad."

Ranma patted her shoulder. "Since I've been through it, I know what it feels like. I'll give you any help I can."

The pigtailed boy didn't notice the intensity of the look Noriko gave him. She placed her hand over the one on her shoulder and said, "I know you will. You're a good person Saotome Ranma. Helping people is a part of your character. I think that's why you want to be a doctor now."

The black haired boy looked at the floor for moment. He chuckled softly before saying, "You're probably right about that. By the way, how do you feel about losing the heir to the Anything Goes School to the practice of medicine?"

The blonde woman shrugged. "I'm young again. I can find a new heir. Besides, it's not like you will be giving up martial arts completely. You plan to be like that Dr. Tofu and still keep up at least some of your training."

He nodded. "That's true. What did you have in mind to do today?"

The girl said, "I thought we would look up Ninomiya Hinako. I have an apology to give her. You will probably also want to tell her of your decision of what field of study you want to go into and to possibly discuss some ideas to further that study."

The boy smiled. "If anyone is likely to want to help me it's her. Do you know any way to help her?"

The blonde sighed deeply. "She's someone I have mixed feelings about. By teaching her the technique to drain ki, I saved her life. She was such a sick child that she would have died without the energy she could drain from people. But it turned her into a social outcast. She's lived a terribly lonely life and it's my fault."

A thought occurred to Ranma. "Maybe that sorceress in Juuban would know a way to turn Ms. Hinako normal. At least it wouldn't hurt to ask her."

"True, it wouldn't hurt," Noriko conceded. "Today is Friday, a school day. We should plan to go to Hinako's apartment to visit her there after school. Tomorrow, school is a half day. I was thinking that would be a good time for you to head over to that book store and talk to the sorceress."

Ranma looked confused. "Since I'm withdrawn from school for now, why would tomorrow being a half day in school make any difference?"

Noriko said, "I think I should be the one to make the offer of buying a yattai for Miss Kuonji. I would be less likely to get sidetracked by emotional arguments. And you know she will pull the 'I'm the cute fiancée,' argument. Besides that I won't be able to talk to her until she gets home from school."

"I don't know…"

The blonde leaned forward to look Ranma in the eyes. "If you go there and try to tell her that to you she'd just a pal, a buddy, you'll never be able to do it. You will be so afraid that you'll hurt her feelings that you won't be able to get the words out. I'll be as gentle as I can, but in your heart you know you aren't going to get clear of that engagement without hurting her to some extent."

Ranma's head sagged as he studied the pattern of the carpet on the floor of the hotel room. "I know, you're right. I just hope there'll be a chance of salvaging the friendship after that."

The girl took one of Ranma's hands in hers. "I suspect that you will need to give her at least a few days to work her way through it. I'd recommend that you go talk to her next week. That way she'll have a little time to get used to the idea and you can confirm that what I tell her is how you really feel."

He gripped her hand gently. "Ok, I'll let you talk to her tomorrow. I'll plan on going by her restaurant on Thursday or Friday next week. We'll have to see how things go with everyone else. After all, there is the chance that my wanting to be a doctor will make my Pop disown me. If that happens, it's pretty much all bets off."

She shook her head. "If Genma disowns you, then he's a bigger idiot than I thought he was."

Even though the subject was serious, he couldn't help laughing at that. "Yeah, that's my Pop. One of the biggest idiots in the world if not _the _biggest."

Noriko let go of Ranma's hand and stood up. "We sort of missed breakfast so what do you say we go get something to eat? We can make it a sort of brunch."

They headed downstairs to the restaurant in the Hotel. The food was adequate, but not exceptional. While they ate Noriko entertained Ranma with tales of her life as Happosai. She was able to put a humorous twist on her telling of the stories so Ranma was getting a good laugh.

After they had finished the meal, Ranma commented, "I don't know why you changing to a girl has made such a difference, but you're fun to hang out with now."

The blonde blushed cutely. "Why thank you, Ranma. It's very nice of you to say that. You're fun to hang out with too."

Her manner sobered as she said, "I have to get in touch with some lawyers. I have to get them working on my will. Before they can process that I will need to have Happosai declared legally dead. There is paperwork that I need to do to have my current form legally made the Grand Master of Anything Goes. Once that is done I need to see about getting you a teaching certificate." 

Ranma sat back against the cushioned back of the booth. "Wait, where did that last part come from? Me, certified to teach? Are you saying that I'm qualified to be a master of Anything Goes like Pops or Mr. Tendo?"

Noriko shook her head. "There are a few things I want to teach you first. I also want to test you on what you already know. I still want to have the paperwork ready."

"But I'm not even sure if I want to teach martial arts anymore," Ranma protested. "I want to be a doctor."

The girl gave a gentle smile, "That doesn't mean you don't deserve to be recognized for what you have already achieved. I seem to remember you saying you could 'kick your Pop's butt any day of the week.' I'd say that was a pretty good indication that you have reached a level of mastery equal to his or better. With the way Soun's let his skills atrophy you are his superior in the Art right now."

"Atrophy?"

"We're going to have to work on your vocabulary if you hope to be a doctor," The blonde said. "It means to dry up or shrivel away from lack of use. I'm sure Soun still knows how to do all the old techniques, but I doubt he could still do many of them without some intense training. Another way of saying it is that he's out of practice."

Ranma nodded. "I know what you mean. From what he and the girls have said about her, his wife must have been a wonderful person. But he went from living to just surviving. It was bad for him and bad for the girls. If Kasumi and Nabiki hadn't stepped in to take over stuff he should have been taking care of, they'd probably be living in the streets now."

He sat silently and thought for a moment. "Well, maybe while I'm studying to be a doctor I could teach kempo to earn money for college. So I guess a teaching certificate would be a good idea after all."

"That's the spirit!"

The pigtailed martial artist smiled. "Tell you what. While you're doing your legal stuff, I'm going to take that book list that Dr. Rinse gave me to the library. I can see which of the books they have there and get in some reading. If there's time after that I can go practice in a park near here. We can plan to meet back here at 3:00 then roof hop over to Ms. Hinako's apartment."

They agreed and headed off to their respective tasks. It was in the afternoon that Ranma and Noriko met back up. Ranma was dressed in his preferred kung fu pants and sleeveless red shirt and Noriko was dressed in a Chinese pantsuit that provided plenty of freedom of movement. She had some of the short dresses that Shampoo favored, but decided not to wear one this time. For a visit to lawyers, a more conservative look seemed appropriate. She looked forward to wearing those short dresses some other day. They showed her legs off nicely and were sure to catch Ranma's eye.

When Ranma had first come to live at the Tendo home in Nerima, Akane had taken him to the library and insisted that he get a library card. It was not until after the failed wedding, when the martial artist was trying to take his studied more seriously, that he had actually used the card. Ranma had done his study in the library and had brought two books back with him. He would drop them off back at the library in the morning.

Noriko had run into a few difficulties at the lawyer's offices. While the lawyers were willing to start things moving on certifying the legality of the will, there was no legal certificate of death for Happosai. Such a document was required before they could agree to handle the bequests.

After some thought, Noriko felt confident that she had a solution to that problem. Lo Shen had offered to help Ranma and Noriko in any way she could. As the only doctor in the village, Dr. Rinse also served as the medical examiner. The doctor could certify that Happosai was dead and Lo Shen, in her capacity as matriarch, could put her official stamp on the document. That should be enough to satisfy the lawyers.

True, it would delay the processing of the will, but it wasn't an insurmountable difficulty. While the matter of having herself legally declared the heir of her former male self was not settled, at least the legal machinery was set in motion. The final disposition of all of it might take as little as two weeks or it could drag on for months.

When she got back to the hotel, Noriko called Lo Shen and told her of the legal problem. The Elder promised that she would get together with Dr. Rinse and get the death certificate prepared. She thought it likely the cause of death would be listed as heart failure due to extreme old age. Po Shen could send a fax from her computer so they would use that to fax a copy for immediate submission to the lawyers and a certified copy would be sent by mail in case the fax was not sufficient to satisfy the lawyers.

From the hotel they took a train to Nerima. From the train station they roof hopped to end up in the street in front of an apartment complex. In short order they were ringing the doorbell at an apartment on the fourth floor.

The door was answered by the diminutive form of an eight year old little girl in a loose fitting yellow dress. She looked up and her eyes went wide when she recognized who had come calling. She said, "Saotome Ranma, you're back? When did you get back? But why did you come to see me at home? Why haven't you come back to school yet?"

Before Ranma could make a reply to the hyperactive little girl, Hinako noticed the blonde and said, "Oh, who's this with you? She's really pretty. Is she your girlfriend? I thought Akane was your fiancé. What's she going to think about this?"

Ranma held his hands out. When the little teacher took the hint and fell silent, Ranma said, "This is Noriko. She's a friend and she's a girl, but she's not a girlfriend. She wants to talk to you, but I have some things I need to tell you first."

With an effort the little girl calmed herself and withdrew into the apartment to allow her guests in through the door. She sat on a chair, gesturing her guests to sit on the couch. When everyone appeared comfortable Hinako asked, "What did you want to tell me, Ranma?"

The pigtailed martial artist asked, "Have you heard the story of my training journey?"

The little girl frowned. Even frowning she looked cute. She said, "Your father stole you from your mother when you were a little child and took you away to learn martial arts. If I remember, he engaged you to a lot of girls and sold you for food. Miss Kuonji was one of those girls, wasn't she?"

"Yes, he did, and yes, she was," the black haired boy agreed. "He also used some training techniques that had a good chance of killing me or driving me insane."

"That wasn't the only problem, though," Ranma continued. "When my father took me away from my Mom he never bothered to find out if Martial Arts was what I really wanted to do. He just assumed it. By the time I got my sex-changing curse, I didn't know anything else and thought the Art is what I really wanted to do."

While in her child form, the small teacher didn't always have the best attention span. From the way the conversation was starting she could tell that it was likely to be a serious discussion. She got up from her chair and asked her guests to wait.

After going to her bedroom, she came back shortly in adult form, carrying a fishbowl. In that bowl were two Siamese fighting fish. By draining their fighting spirit she was able to stay adult for as long as she wanted to. She had found that staying adult all of the time wasn't always the best thing because she had occasional relapses into childish behavior. Now that she had focused her adult intellect on what she was hearing, she noticed something about Ranma's phrasing. She asked, "Did you find out that you want to do something else?"

Ranma nodded. "Yeah. I'll never completely abandon martial arts because it's been such a large part of my life. But I don't want it to be the only thing in my life anymore. I recently had the chance to help out at a medical clinic while I was in China. While I was there I found out that I liked it and the way I was helping people. I also found out that I have a real talent for it."

"Oh!" The woman looked surprised. "Are you saying you want to be a doctor?"

The boy with the pigtail smiled. "That's right. I know that's going to be hard with all the school I've missed and the bad grades I've gotten, but I want to try."

The long-haired brunette said, "Part of the reason I was so upset when you withdrew was because of how greatly you had improved in your scholastic performance since the wedding with Akane went bad. With the effort you were putting in and the results you were producing I could tell you really are smarter than you ever let anyone believe."

The young man confessed, "Before I was focused only on becoming the best martial artist. But I came to realize that wasn't enough. If I were to run a dojo I needed to know how to teach. I also needed to know how to run a business. If I tried to run a dojo with the sorry state of my education like it was, I'd probably be completely broke in a year or less."

Before Ms. Hinako could comment, he went on, "What I did was to treat my classes as if they were a martial arts challenge. I approached my classes like they were opponents I was preparing to fight. And it worked. I started staying awake in class and I started catching up on the stuff I missed by being on the road all those years."

His expression grew grim. "With my past, I know becoming a doctor will be hard. I will approach that challenge just the same as I've gone at learning what I'd need to run a dojo. I'll work hard."

The educator was impressed. She could easily believe that Ranma would apply his formidable learning abilities to the task. If he went into the study of medicine with even a fraction of the determination he had applied to martial arts, he would become a wonderful doctor.

Hinako said, "Thank you for telling me this, Ranma. I'll give what help and tutoring I can. I'll find other tutors to help you. I think you'll make a great doctor."

He bowed his head in gratitude. After a moment he said, "There was a reason why Noriko is here with me today. Did you notice anything familiar about her?"

"Familiar?" She thought about it. She looked at the blonde haired woman. The thought that came to her now seemed impossible. "No, that can't be!"

Noriko bowed her head and said, "I am the 'sick friend' that Ranma went to help. I was dying and the only thing that could save me was some of the same water that gave Ranma his curse."

The brunette shook her head, "Are you trying to tell me that the old, perverted man who made me into an age-changing ki vampire is now a teenaged girl?"

When both of her guests nodded, she leaned back in her seat. Finally she said, "That seems oddly ironic. But why have you come here? I can understand Ranma and the news he had."

Noriko bowed her head. "When I first taught you the ki draining technique I felt proud that I had actually done something good. I had saved a life. Then I learned that by doing so I had condemned you to life of loneliness as an outcast from society, I felt guilty. If there were a different way I could have helped you, I would. If there were some way I could make it so that your adult form was your only form, I'd do that."

Hinako just stared at her guest. She wasn't sure what to say.

Ranma broke in, "I'll help you too, if I can. I am not only going to study modern medicine. I will be studying herbal medicine, ki healing and magic healing. If there is anything in those disciplines that will help you, I will search them out for you."

The educator smiled. With such a kind and giving soul, Ranma would indeed be a good doctor. She didn't think the cure for her condition would be so easily found, but she was grateful that there would be people looking.

She decided that she would play hostess. She asked, "Would you care for tea? I'm sorry I can't offer you cookies. I can't keep any in the apartment. When I'm a little girl I just gobble them up without a thought."

"I've got an idea." Ranma suggested, "Why don't we take you out to dinner. I'm sure you must get tired of your own cooking."

The brunette woman smiled ruefully. "As a little girl I usually limit myself to heating up pre-packaged foods. When I try to make anything fancier, I have accidents and hurt myself."

Ranma could understand that. Before they could get out the door, Ms. Hinako reverted back to her child form. They went out to have a pleasant dinner. They chatted about a lot of things while they ate. Some of what the child-like teacher had to say was surprising. It was amazing what people will talk about when the only person listening looks too young to understand.

Some of what Hinako had to tell them matched what Nabiki had related in her emails. Some was similar but given from the teacher's different perspective. None of it was really shocking, but it was all interesting.

When they dropped her back at her apartment, the little girl knew enough not to get her hopes up. Ranma and the rejuvenated Happosai didn't say they had any potential cure for her. They had only promised to give what help they could. Such a cure could take years to find or they might not ever find it at all. At least Happosai was a much nicer person as a girl.

After the travelers got back to the area of the hotel, they went to the park to spar. They picked an area that wasn't often visited to reduce the chance of people being hurt.

After a good workout the two martial artists returned to the hotel and went to bed.

Author's Note: Back in Japan and starting in the effort to set things right. Yes, coming back early was a good idea. Coming up Ranma will visit the sorceress in Juuban and on the way will run into the Senshi. Do they give autographs?

Thanks to UNSpacy000 for help beta reading this fic.


	13. Chapter 13 Meeting the Senshi

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga

Chapter 12

Meeting the Senshi

The next morning right after breakfast, Ranma headed over to Juuban. He roof hopped to save on train fare and for the exercise. When he was about a kilometer from the store he was distracted by the sound of explosions and crashes.

Since he had time to spare, he detoured in the direction of the disturbance. He finally came to a stop on the roof of a five story building and looked down on the scene of battle in the street.

The scene was one of total chaos. The first things that one noticed were the monsters. There were three of the giants, each one over three meters tall. They looked like they were assembled from a random assortment of boulders, rocks and pebbles into a roughly man-like shape with huge barrel chests and short arms and legs. Their heads were just round rocks with no faces. Ranma had to wonder how they could see to fight without eyes. They somehow seemed to manage, though. The monsters also had no toes on their feet, making them look like big, clumsy shoes. On their hands they did have short, stubby fingers.

Fighting against them were girls dressed in what looked like cheerleader outfits complete with short skirts. He had a brief mental image of what Noriko would look like in a similar costume, but dismissed it with a shake of his head. This was no time for fantasies! The uniforms included what looked like a sailor flap on the back. That one feature made Ranma think that these must be the Sailor Senshi he had heard about. Akane was a fan of theirs and always followed all of the news stories about their battles.

The girls didn't seem to be doing too well. They were throwing some kind of energy attacks at the creatures. One was using lightning, another fire, the one with the orange skirt seemed to be throwing attacks composed of glowing hearts. The one with the blue hair was attacking with what looked like freezing water. He couldn't tell for sure what it was the blonde with the odangos and long ponytails was using other than it seemed like some kind of energy attack.

What he could tell was that the attacks that the girls were using didn't seem to do more than slow the rock monsters down. Their actions had occupied the monsters and allowed the civilians to escape. There were police in the area but they didn't appear to be well enough armed to handle the problem either. Likely for foes of this type it would take some kind of explosive rockets instead of just bullets. For the present all the police could do was to keep the gawkers out of the battle zone.

Hmm. The Breaking Point technique wasn't supposed to work on living creatures. He wondered if that would also apply to magically animated stone. Well, only one way to find out.

He leapt from his spot on the roof at an angle that would get him to one of the monsters. He was aiming at the chest. He used the Iron Skin technique to harden his index finger on his right hand to the consistency of a steel rod. His ki senses had found the needed weak point.

This would be tricky. His male form didn't have the hardening of the Breaking Point training, so he would have to do this as a hit and run to avoid the worst of the shrapnel and trust his ki healing to repair any damage. Fractions of a second later his finger stabbed into the chest of the stone monster and he called out, "_Bukusai Tenketsu_." As the monster's chest exploded, Ranma bounded away with all of his formidable speed in an effort to get out of the blast zone.

When Ranma landed he checked himself over and was relieved to find he had suffered only superficial cuts. Turning his attention back to the battle, he looked back at the creature he had hit. The upper portion of its torso was rubble. This is when it became apparent that the creatures really were assembled from random stones. Whatever magic had held the rocks in the manlike shape lost its grip and the rest of the creature fell apart.

The blonde with the long ponytails spared enough attention from the ongoing battle to demand, "Who are you?" She wondered why this man was here and not her usual tuxedo clad rescuer.

Ranma just shook his head and yelled back, "We can talk after these guys are taken care of."

Conceding the wisdom of that, the girls went back to their attacks. When one of the rock monsters turned away from Ranma to face the girls, he leapt at its back. Unfortunately the other remaining monster was watching its companion's back. A stone hand came swinging into view and slapped Ranma away. The boy's flight was stopped when he slammed into the concrete wall of a building, leaving a Ranma-shaped indentation. While flying backward, Ranma was able to invoke Iron Skin over his whole body. Even with that protection it still hurt. "Ite." Ranma proclaimed.

Pushing himself out of the indentation, Ranma shook his head to clear the cobwebs and commented, "Damn, that thing hits harder than Ryoga."

Apparently the monsters thought the pigtailed boy was permanently removed from the battle because they were concentrating their attacks on the girls. Ranma snorted, "Ignore me, will you?" He launched himself forward again and this time reached the back of one of the monsters. With another well placed Breaking Point, the second monster exploded like the first.

After landing back on the ground near where the girls were, Ranma yelled, "Ladies would you like to take the last one?"

The pony-tailed blonde called out, "All together!" With that instruction all of the girls struck with their attacks at the same time. The combined attack appeared to be too much for the monster and it too exploded under the magical assault.

As soon as the rock monster's remains fell, all of the girls turned toward Ranma. Sailor Moon asked, "How did you survive being slammed into the wall like that?"

"Oh, that," he said offhandedly. "There's this martial arts ki manipulation technique called Iron Skin. You channel your ki into your skin to make it as tough as armor. Even using that technique I'm still going to be feeling that one later. I'm already channeling ki to heal myself."

Sailor Venus was staring at the handsome boy with hearts in her eyes. What a dreamy hunk! Even the dirt and torn clothing from the battle helped to increase his appeal. It was with an extremely distracted air, that she asked, "What's ki?"

Sailor Mercury was scanning with her computer and had the holographic visor over her eyes. Reading the analysis, she announced, "It is pure life energy. This man has tons of it. It's a good thing he wasn't around here when Beryl's youma were stealing energy. He'd be a prime target for them with all the energy he's got."

The blonde with the pony tails stepped forward and bowed, saying, "I'm Sailor Moon and we are the beautiful sailor suited defenders of love and justice known as the Sailor Senshi."

The pigtailed boy stood there blinking. They really called themselves that? He thought it was just some silly name made up by the newspapers to describe them. He shook himself out of his introspection and said, "Wow, it's great to meet you. My fiancé is one of your biggest fans."

He looked over the girls and pointed at the other blonde. "So you would be Sailor Venus, right? I've played your video game – lots of fun. The one with the fire attacks must be Sailor Mars, the one with the computer is Sailor Mercury and the tall one would have to be Jupiter."

Sailor Moon smiled. "That's right."

Normally the girls would have expected Jupiter to say something about how this hunky boy looked like her old boyfriend, by now. Instead, she was looking a little dazed as if she recognized the boy and was overawed to be in his presence.

Before Sailor Moon could ask his name, Ranma asked, "But aren't there more of you?"

Moon nodded and said, "You mean the Outers. They got the emergency alert. They are probably on their way right now."

"Wow, cool!" He pulled a notebook out of stuff space. This was the same notebook he had used to take notes when he had been at the library the previous day. "My fiancé would be really impressed if I could get your autographs."

While the Senshi normally didn't give autographs, they didn't think it was too much to do to thank the man who had just helped them fight some really tough monsters. Moon took the notebook and Ranma told her, "Say 'To my biggest fan, Akane."

The pony-tailed blonde nodded and started to write. While she was doing that Mercury asked, "What was that attack you used on the rock monsters?" Silently she wondered if there wsd some way she could learn how to do something like that herself.

Jupiter was not saying much. She seemed to trying to decide on how to behave. On the one, hand here was a handsome boy, but on the other hand she was sure she recognized him and was not sure if she should be hero worship she should be feeling.

He explained, "It's called the Breaking Point. One uses ki senses to find the weakest point in a rock and pour ki into it. It causes the rock to explode. Since the attack doesn't work on living creatures I guess I was lucky that those things were magically animated stone and not really living."

"Lucky?" Mercury echoed. She was not so sure about that.

Just then three more women jumped down from a nearby rooftop. One was a tall blonde with short hair, the second a pretty woman with aqua colored hair and the third was a younger looking girl with dark purple hair. The young one looked about the same age as Ranma's girl form. The youngest was carrying a really formidable looking pole-arm with a pair of wicked looking blades on the end.

The short haired blonde said, "Sorry we're late. Who's this guy and why does he look familiar?"

At that moment Ranma's curse made an agreement with the local storm gods. The result was a sudden burst of rain that seemed to fall only on one person. The now wet redhead muttered, "The kami must hate me."

The first thought in Uranus' mind was what a hot looking girl this was. The fact that that girl had just been a boy was enough to shake her out of her distraction. There was no time to wait for the analysis from Mercury's computer. She shouted, "Everybody get back! It's starlight! You can never trust them. World Shaking!"

Sailor Moon had been handing Ranma's notebook to Sailor Mars. She shouted, "Uranus, wait!"

Before her words could register, Neptune called out her attack, "Deep Submerge." Saturn held the Silence Glaive ready, but held off using it, waiting to see how the stranger fared against her teammates.

After taking the full brunt of the World Shaking, Ranma rather shakily dodged the Deep Submerge attack. She shouted, "Damn it, stop attacking me! I'm on your side!"

"Like I'm going to believe you!" The Senshi of Uranus launched another attack.

Ranma was starting to get pissed off. While dodging she muttered, "That damned uncute, macho tomboy better appreciate what I had to go through to get their autographs."

While this was going on Mercury was trying to get the attention of the Outers to tell to tell them the girl had no dark energy and wasn't a threat. Saturn was the only one of the outers who heard. The youngest of the Senshi relaxed her posture and rested the butt of the Silence Glaive on the ground.

Another attack grazed Ranma and she looked down at herself. She was getting a bit battered but her clothing was a tattered mass of rags that barely covered her enough to protect her modesty. Damn it! She had liked those clothes. On top of that she was practically flashing everyone. Maybe it would be a good idea to start carrying a spare set of clothes in stuff space if she was going to keep getting into fights like this.

"Damn it! If you want a fight, I'll give you one." Her battle aura flared as she prepared to deliver a smack down on the two crazy chicks. Considering that the Outer Senshi seemed intent on killing her, the no hitting girls rule could be suspended for the present.

Before she could launch her attack a new voice fairly screamed, "STOP!" When everybody paused for a moment the voice continued, "Uranus, Neptune, stand down!" Ranma welcomed the intervention and relaxed her ready stance. Maybe this newcomer could talk some sense into these crazy women.

The newest person to join the group was a strikingly beautiful tall woman with green hair. The skirt of her fuku was black.

Uranus protested, "But she…"

The green haired woman glared. "I said STAND DOWN! I won't have you attacking an ally."

At that all of the Senshi responded, "Ally?"

The newcomer walked over to Ranma and produced a thermos seemingly from nowhere. As she handed the thermos to the redhead she said, "I apologize for my teammates' zeal. They sometimes... err on the side of caution."

"_Caution? All she had to do was ask me what I was there for_," he thought angrily. Thanking the woman, Ranma opened the thermos and poured some hot water to turn male again. While doing it he was muttering, "Damn crazy, trigger happy magical girls."

"_Yes_!" thought Sailor Pluto. "_I arrived at just the right time to earn his gratitude_." The Senshi of Time's manner seemed oddly respectful. "Are you injured, Saotome-San?" 

Handing the thermos back to the green haired woman, he shrugged, "I've taken worse. A little ki channeling and I should be good as new. Uh… how do you know my name?"

She said, "I am the Senshi of Time." She said it as if that explained everything. 

While that little tidbit of information didn't really explain everything, it explained enough. Ranma digested that then ventured, "So you had knowledge from the future that we'd meet?"

She nodded. "That's right."

He scowled. "If you knew this was going to happen couldn't you have got here _before_ she attacked me?" He pointed at Uranus.

The green haired woman bowed her head. "I'm sorry. I tried to get here faster but I had to pick up the thermos and some other things."

In truth she could have arrived at any point she wanted, but had chosen carefully. By showing up when she did, Pluto could play the voice of reason as a counter to her hot-headed teammates and earn a measure of respect. Her future self had advised that this man would be responsible for saving the lives of several people who would be instrumental in the creation of Crystal Tokyo. She needed to get him on her side.

Again from nowhere she produced a couple of folded garments. She handed them to the startled young man. He looked at the tattered garments he was wearing and the clothing now in his hands. "You really did know this was going to happen." It was voiced as a statement rather than a question.

With Chestnut Fist speed he changed into the new garments. He found they were an excellent fit. The pants were black and had an elastic waistband. That would allow the pants to stay up if he got changed to female before he could get another outfit. The shirt was what he'd heard referred to as a "scrub shirt" such as doctors wore when on duty in a hospital. It was a light green in color and stitched on the front in dark blue was a caduceus, the symbol of a doctor.

He fingered the stitching on the shirt and said, "I haven't earned the right to wear this symbol."

The woman in the black-skirted fuku patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, you will."

The Senshi of Time turned from Ranma and said, "You should all finish signing that notebook. I know Saotome-San's fiancé will treasure it."

Nearly pushing Pluto aside, Jupiter stepped up. She looked on with stars in her eyes. She knew it! This was him! The number one martial arts idol in all of Japan. It was such an honor just to meet him.

Now that she heard the name, Uranus suddenly realized why the man looked familiar. She had seen his picture before. In fact she had seen pictures of the female version as well. It was just that witnessing the transformation had been such a shock she had assumed that only an enemy would be able to do such a thing. She cursed her stupidity. Wanting to be sure, the blonde asked, "Did she say Saotome, as in Saotome Ranma from Nerima?"

The pigtailed boy had learned to be cautious when people asked about his name in that way. For all he knew this might be another fiancé. Still, he wasn't going to lie. "Uh…Yeah, that's me."

Nearly everybody was concentrating on Ranma, so they didn't see Mercury's eyes go wide on recognition of the name. She was remembering a story that her mother had told her about treating an injured young martial artist named Saotome Ranma. The boy's father had no money to pay and had promised that the boy would marry the doctor's daughter instead. But if he already had a fiancée... perhaps it would be better to find an opportunity to talk to him in private later.

"Saotome-san, I'm so sorry I attacked you!" the short-haired blonde apologized, her earlier hostility forgotten. "Still, I should have expected Saotome Ranma to be able to take my attack and keep going. You're one of my biggest heroes. You're famous. It's like you're the greatest martial artist in Japan."

Sailor Jupiter similarly gushed, "I've heard of you too. Your exploits are amazing. The way you fought that flying monster was great." Silently, she added in thought, "_You look __**better **__than my old boyfriend_."

"Uh… Thanks." He guessed the monster she was talking about was Pantyhose Taro. Of course it could have been one of the Phoenix, as Captain Kiima and two of her subordinates had some to Tokyo.

By the time the notebook was signed by the last of the Senshi, Ranma was beginning to wonder if the two martial arts otaku were going to ask for his autograph in return.

Uranus had pulled a piece of paper from stuff space and looked ready to present it to Ranma for his autograph. Pluto gave her fellow Outer a quelling glare and the blonde reluctantly returned the paper to stuff space. Perhaps it was just as well. The only paper Uranus had on her at the time was a receipt from a fast food restaurant. It would likely also be a good idea to give him a chance to forget about her trying to kill him, well... her at the time.

Sailor Saturn stepped forward and looked ready to speak, but Pluto beat her to it. "Saotome-san, Sailor Saturn has the ability to heal wounds. It seems only fair that she uses her ability to heal the wounds you received while aiding her teammates."

Glancing at the green haired woman, Ranma then turned his gaze on the young girl with the wicked looking pole-arm. For someone wielding such a weapon, the girl had a friendly demeanor.

The pigtailed martial artist smiled at the girl and told her, "Thanks for the offer, but I've learned to quickly heal myself through ki manipulation." He displayed his arm and Saturn could see a bruise visibly fading.

After the notebook had been signed by the last of the Senshi, Ranma took it back and stashed it in stuff space. He said, "Well it's been… interesting meeting you. I'm willing to overlook the attack as a misunderstanding." Unfortunately for him, misunderstandings of that sort seemed to happen to him all the time. He turned and leapt to the roof of a nearby building and proceeded to roof hop toward the bookstore.

Usagi stalked over to Pluto and demanded, "What's the deal? I can understand Uranus and Jupiter acting like that around a famous martial artist, but why were you acting so respectful to him? Did your future- self tell you something about him?" Silently she added in thought, "_Not to mention the weak excuse you gave for getting here after he was attacked. He might have bought it, but I know you. What game are you playing, Setsuna_?"

Setsuna nodded. "Yes, she did. In fact a future version of Saotome-San was with her at the time. He may be a martial artist now, but he will soon begin the formal study of medicine. He has already started to study it informally."

Sailor Moon nodded. "Okay, he's going to be a doctor, I get that. Why would he be with your future self?"

The Senshi of Time rolled her eyes. "He's not just any doctor; he's _our_ doctor (or will be.) During his studies he will gain enormous medical knowledge but even greater healing powers both ki based and magical. He will save the lives of each of each of us many times over. If that's not enough for you, he is the reincarnation of Queen Serenity's doctor from the Silver Millennium. In that lifetime he delivered Princess Serenity (you.) He will be the doctor who delivers Chibi Usa."

"Oh" The Moon Princess wasn't sure how to react to that. Finally she commented, "But he's still just a kid."

The Senshi of Pluto smiled at that. "So he is; and so are you too. The thing about kids is that they don't stay that way forever. You have grown up a lot since you took on the responsibilities of Sailor Moon. The life that Saotome Ranma has lived has given him experiences that most people two or three times his age haven't accumulated."

The Moon Princess glanced in the direction the young man had gone. She resolved to talk to Jupiter about him later. Makoto seemed to know some things.

Moon let out a sigh. "Then I wish we'd had more time to talk to him. You make him sound like an interesting person. What I don't understand is why magical girls with healing powers would even need a doctor."

Pluto seemed amused as she explained, "Putting it in common terms you could think of healing power such as Saturn's as your basic first aid kit. When he completes his education and refines his healing powers, Saotome-San's healing power would be more like a fully equipped research hospital."

"He's going to get that good?"

The Guardian of the Gates of Time nodded and said, "Don't worry. You'll meet him again." Before Usagi had a chance to ask any more questions, Setsuna disappeared. She had teleported away.

A kilometer away Ranma landed in the street in front of a store with a sign that said, "The Spell Book," in stylized Romanji. Below that was the picture of a huge open book with burning candles to the left and right.

When he pushed open the door, a bell rang. A young woman standing behind a cash register near the door straightened up and looked like she was ready to step forward to tend to the new customer.

A voice called out, "I'll take this one, Akemi."

From the direction of the voice there came a woman who appeared to be in her 50's. Her posture was erect and she had hair that was more gray than brown. She wore glasses with half-moon lenses that rested nearly at the end of her nose. The eyes revealed were brown and bore an inquisitive expression.

The woman said, "How may I help you, young man?"

From stuff space Ranma pulled out a list. From the pages of book titles that Dr. Rinse had given him he had copied the titles that she said would likely have to come from a store specializing in books on the occult. He handed the list to the lady he assumed to be the owner of the store.

The older woman looked over the paper. "Quite a list. I see 'Rivers of Light, Rivers of Life' by Nakasone, 'Medicinal Plants of Asia' by Howard Swan, 'Healing Powers' by Xeltraphon among others. You are looking for books on ki healing, herbal medicine and magic healing? It would appear that someone wishes to become a somewhat unconventional doctor."

Ranma nodded. "I recently helped out in a medical clinic for a couple weeks. In addition to some more modern medical books, those were recommended to me by a Dr. Rin Se."

The book store owner considered that name. "This doctor friend of yours wouldn't happen to be a Chinese Amazon, would she?"

The pigtailed martial artist nodded. "She lives in a village in the Qinghai province."

The bookstore owner looked over the list again. "I see. I know some people in that part of the world. We have most of these books. Two of them I'll have to order. Two of them are out of print and might be difficult to obtain. You might try looking them up on the Internet. That way you would likely be able to get them as fast as I could."

She took a pencil and checked those titles then handed the list back to Ranma. "If you will forgive me for being nosey, I can detect the presence of magic on you. Some of it is recent and some has been with you for a while."

The black haired boy raised an eyebrow. After considering for a moment he said, "The most recent magic came from a misunderstanding with the Sailor Senshi about a kilometer from here. They mistook me for an enemy and tried to hit me with some of their magic attacks."

The graying storekeeper's eyebrows went up. She asked, "_Did_ they hit you?"

"Just once," Ranma reported. "I dodged the rest of their attacks. They apologized when they realized I was one of the good guys."

"I should think so too," She said. "You don't seem too badly injured."

"Nah, I'm pretty tough and I can heal myself," he replied. "It sort of wrecked my clothes though. They were nice enough to give me something else to wear."

She nodded sagely. "That would account for the scent of magic on your clothing."

He frowned, looking confused. "Magic has a smell?"

"To an experienced magic user it does," She explained.

"Ah! I see," he responded. "I did have a reason to come visit you here besides the books. Since I needed the books anyway I thought I would ask about them too. You know, 'two birds with one stone,' and that kind of thing."

"I suspected as much." The woman smiled.

He said, "The Matriarch of the Amazon tribe in that same village where the doctor lives said I should look up a sorceress who lives in Juuban. She didn't have an address but a friend of mine looked you up from your name. The Matriarch's name is Lo Shen."

"Oh, my!" The older woman exclaimed. "I haven't heard from little Lo Shen for a very long time."

"'Little' Lo Shen?" That didn't seem like a name that should be applied to a woman who was more than a century old.

The shopkeeper laughed. "I'm older than I look. I've known Lo Shen since she was a little girl."

She glanced over to the woman behind the cash register and told her, "Akemi, mind the store for a while. It turns out that this is a _specia_l customer. I'm going to take him back to the workshop."

The younger woman nodded and waved. The shopkeeper headed toward the back of the store, instructing, "Follow me."

As they threaded their way between bookcases Ranma asked, "Don't you want to know what Lo Shen sent me to you for?"

"No," answered the old woman. "I like to figure this sort of thing out myself when it's a magic problem."

Ranma shrugged. If that was how she wanted to play it.

They finally got to the back of the shop space and went out a door into a hallway. They went down the hall to the end then down a flight of stairs. In the basement they passed some other doors on the way. The woman pulled a chain from around her neck to reveal a key that hung from it. She used that key to unlock the door at the end of the hall.

The room was spacious and in the middle was a table about the size of a dining table for eight people. The chairs were comfortable overstuffed ones rather than the usual ones you'd see as part of a dinette set. Along one wall there was an odd piece of built-in furniture. It was a sort of cabinet with dozens of drawers.

The sorceress waved toward the table and said, "Have a seat." She moved along the wall until she seemed to find the drawer she was looking for. She pulled the drawer open and withdrew what looked like a piece of costume jewelry. It was a gem about the size of the end of Ranma's thumb.

The woman handed the jewel to Ranma and said, "Here, hold this."

The martial artist took the gem in his hand. The moment it touched the palm of his hand, the jewel began to glow with a bright blue light. Upon seeing the gem's reaction, the sorceress proclaimed, "Aha! Jusenkyo, just as I thought."

Ranma rolled his eyes. "All you had to do was ask me."

She pointed out, "If you had told me there is the chance you could have lied or been mistaken about the nature of the magic that was worked on you. This way I'm sure."

The older woman was about to reach out to take the gem back when she noticed an odd flicker in the blue light. It was like it changed to a blue green tint then back to the blue. Seeing that she shook her head and took back the gem. That flicker indicated an additional magical problem. It appeared that in addition to the shape shifting curse, the boy was also afflicted with the "May you live in interesting times" curse.

The boy shrugged. Apparently she had her own way of doing things.

Ms. Watanabe thought for a moment, while regarding the gem. Finally she said, "From your account of your meeting with the Senshi and your attitude in describing it, I get the feeling that you have many strange things happen in your life."

Ranma snorted mirthlessly. "Yeah, you could say that." It would take far too long to detail all of the strange things that happened in his life.

Nodding, the older woman reported, "Have you ever heard of the curse, 'May you live in interesting times'?"

"Heard of it?" He snorted again. "Hell, I live it!"

"Well, in your case it is an actual curse," the graying bookshop owner explained. "Would you have any idea where you picked up such a curse?"

He thought about it. "Nope, no idea. My life has been like that for as long as I can remember. You could say I'm used to it by now, but it doesn't mean I like it. Would there be any way you could... weaken that curse or something."

"Would you prefer to have it removed completely?" the sorceress asked in wonder.

"Nah, wouldn't want my life to get boring," was the boy's surprising answer. Then he thought further and said, "But if I'm going to be a doctor, maybe getting it taken off would be better. I'd hate for my patients to get hurt because something weird happened at my office."

"Yes, it might be better for the safety of your patients," Watanabe said with some humor. "That particular type of curse is rare. I will need to do some research to see what I might be able to do to remove or modify it."

Replacing the gem in the drawer she pulled out a round leather case. The leather looked old and weathered. From that case the old woman pulled a lens. She held this up and peered at Ranma through the glass. She seemed to be studying the teen carefully.

After a while she finally said, "Spring of Drowned Young Girl. From what I can see here your cursed form is a really cute redhead of about 13 years in age. To tell the truth I've never heard of a girl coming out of that spring that wasn't at least cute and a few that grew into absolutely gorgeous women."

Ranma frowned. Thinking about his own girl side he grumbled, "I can't say I'm thrilled about that."

The sorceress looked amused. "If you have to change into woman wouldn't you prefer to change into a pretty one?"

He gave her a level look. "If I turned into a plain or ugly girl I wouldn't have to put up with so many perverted boys trying to date me."

She nodded. "Since you're a boy inside, I can understand how you wouldn't find that a pleasant experience."

The boy shook his head emphatically.

The sorceress frowned. "Other than getting books, what did you hope to get out of this visit to my shop?"

He leaned back in his chair. "Lo Shen told me that she knew of a sorceress who could do magic that would let someone with the girl curse change the trigger from water to will power."

The woman nodded. "Yes I do know such magic. Did Lo Shen tell you some of the limitations and conditions?" 

Ranma's expression was serious now. "Yes. I need to pick times to be a girl and I need to spend half or more of my time in girl form or I could find myself changing without willing it any time my mind wanders. At least by changing the trigger I get rid of the whole water magnet thing."

Ms. Watanabe nodded with evident satisfaction. "A very succinct summation, I must say. I noticed that, while your girl form looks to be about 13, your boy form looks 16."

"Wait!" he begged. "You said my birth form is 16. I'm 17 years old."

"No, I said your birth form _looks_ 16," the sorceress said. "Time you have spent in female form is time that your male form wasn't aging. Each form ages only when it is active. You may be seventeen in the total number of years you have lived, but your male form has only lived sixteen of those years."

"So my life span is doubled?" he speculated. "I had heard something about that before, I wasn't sure I believed it at the time."

"Yes, your lifespan is double, if you don't die by violence first," the sorceress conceded. "From what you mentioned of your encounter with the Sailor Senshi, that sounds like a possibility."

She paused then said, "Anyway, if you want your female form to catch up to your male form you would need to spend extra time as a girl. Products like the waterproof soap won't work when water is no longer your trigger."

The boy nodded. "I guess that's why Lo Shen said I should keep this." He pulled the locking ring on its chain from under his shirt.

The sorceress studied the ring for a moment. "Oh, a Joketsuzoku locking ring. It's been a while since I've seen one of those. That would work. While you wear it, the ring would keep you female regardless of whether your trigger is water or will power."

Ranma looked thoughtful. "This goes beyond my original reason for coming here, but I wanted to ask. Is there some way that my clothes can change when I do?"

The sorceress frowned as she considered. Finally she said, "There is a way, but to do it you would need to learn the magic yourself. There is no talisman, charm or other magical object that can do it, at least not that I have access to. In effect it is a short-range teleport. I could see that you already have one of the requirements. You know the Hidden Weapons technique, right?"

The young man grinned. "It's such a useful technique."

She nodded. "It lets you carry more than you could hold in your arms. You can also carry more weight in your subspace pocket than your muscles will support. I'll bet physicists would love to study the phenomenon."

She paused. "The magic I have in mind would let you exchange an outfit you are wearing with one you are carrying in your hidden pocket."

Ranma interjected, "I call it stuff space."

The sorceress perked up at that. "Oh, right! You call it that because you keep stuff in it. I like that. It may be a better name than calling it a hidden pocket. Once you master the spell, you could change clothes anytime you will the sex change. The one advantage I could see is that you wouldn't have to wear clothing that was too large for your female body or too small for your male form."

"Is it hard to learn?"

Ms. Watanabe shrugged. "That depends on the student. It's easy for some, hard for others. I suspect that if you've already mastered the Hidden Weapons technique you should learn the clothing swap without too much trouble."

He nodded. "I'd like to try. How much will I owe you for that?"

She shook her head. "The store upstairs is what I do to pay the bills. For the magic, all I ask is that you pay for the materials that I use." She pulled a piece of paper out of a drawer and jotted a few things down with a pencil. When she was done she took a calculator and added up the figures. She showed Ranma the total.

It wasn't bad. He had feared that it would be terribly expensive. He said, "That isn't bad. I wanted to mention something else." He described Ms. Hinako's condition.

The sorceress frowned. "The spell to change your trigger I could perform in a few minutes. I have all the materials on hand and I know the spell. For the clothing swap you would need to come here for lessons. I'd estimate an hour a day, probably no less than one to two weeks. If you haven't learned it in two months you should probably give up."

With some further thought, she said, "For the lady with the ki problem, I don't know. I'll have to research it. How did she get that way?"

Ranma gave a condensed version of the story. The sorceress asked, "What was the name of the man who taught her this technique?"

"Happosai."

Ms. Watanabe frowned. "I haven't seen Happi in a long time. Did he ever find the magic he was looking for?

The pigtailed boy nodded. "Yes he did, but it was almost too late. He nearly died and I had to feed him ki to keep him alive. 'He' is now a gorgeous 19 year old blonde girl."

The sorceress laughed. "I know he told me he was born a girl, but since I never saw him that way, I have a hard time imagining it."

The young martial artist nodded. "I had a hard time accepting it at first. Being a girl has made such a difference in her behavior. From talking to her I can tell she remembers being the old pervert, she just doesn't want to be like that anymore. _He_ used to be a royal pain in the butt. Now _she's_ a friend and I'm glad to have her as one."

The older woman listened to the tone the boy used. She was sure that what the boy felt for the transformed former ancient pervert was more than just friendship. She was equally sure that the boy wasn't aware of the exact nature of what it was he was feeling.

They would certainly make an odd couple, the sex changing boy and the girl who used to be a man. She had to wonder what the girl felt about the boy. If the boy was going to be coming in for lessons on how to do the clothing swap spell, Ms. Watanabe would monitor how things went. It would be nice to talk to this female version of Happi.

Ms. Watanabe began to pull things out of drawers and line them up on the table. After she had things laid out she grabbed a notebook from a shelf. The book looked like a business journal. She explained, "I created this spell myself, so I just need to check to make sure I've got all the ingredients."

She checked the assembled materials on the table against the list in the book. She gave a satisfied nod. From the table she picked up a piece of chalk and took it over to a clear section of floor. There she moved a few items out of the way and started to draw a design. At times she would change colors of chalk. She explained that the chalk was enchanted.

After the multicolored design was completed, the sorceress began placing talismans in spots that had been left blank. When she completed positioning those she put an amulet on a chain over her head. She pointed and said, "I left a path through the design. Follow the path to the center."

Looking very nervous, the boy did as bid and soon was standing in the center of the pattern. The sorceress took more chalk and filled the gaps in the design. When she finished that she placed the chalks back on the table and picked up a sort of staff that had a carving that looked like a ram's head on one end and a woman's head on the other.

"Are you ready?" Ms. Watanabe asked.

Still looking apprehensive, Ranma replied, "Would it make any difference if I said no?"

She laughed. "No difference. We're committed now. You have to stay where you are and not smudge any of the lines, it could create problems. I should mention that this design is more elaborate than is really needed to do the job. Over time I added safeguards so now there's no chance of this going wrong."

He nodded. "Forgive me if I feel nervous. None of the magic I've experienced has ever been good for me."

She recommended, "Relax. All you should feel is a tingle, the same as you do when you change forms."

Author's Note: I couldn't have Ranma visit Juuban and not have an encounter with the Senshi. This is not a fukufic and Ranma won't become a Senshi as part of it. I hope I adequately explained why the Senshi might need a doctor. The Senshi will not play a major part in this story.

Ranma's not sure if he's ready to have his curse trigger changed even if it is something he wanted. To see how that goes for him, check out the next chapter.

Thanks to UNSpacy000 for beta reading this.


	14. Chapter 14 Ranma Has Magic

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 13

Ranma Has Magic

The sorceress checked her list and looked over the pattern she had drawn on the floor. When she was sure everything was ready she held out the staff in her hands and began to chant in a low voice. As she chanted Ranma looked down at the design. As the ceremony continued his gaze followed things that seemed to catch his interest. Ms. Watanabe didn't let herself be distracted but did have the stray thought that the boy shouldn't be able to see any of the forces working on him.

When she spoke the last word of the last incantation she gave a satisfied nod. She called out to Ranma, "You should be able to change at will now. Try it out."

The martial artist nodded and for the first time changed into a girl without water. Then she changed back. His face lit up in a smile and he exclaimed, "That's pretty cool!"

The sorceress motioned to him and said, "You can come out of there now. Don't worry about the lines, we're done with them. We have a girl that comes in during the evenings who will clean it up."

When Ranma was seated in a comfortable chair, Ms. Watanabe noted, "You were looking around a lot when I was casting the spell. Why is that?" 

The boy glanced over to the design on the floor. Then he explained, "I was checking out the light show."

"Light show?" Now she was intrigued. "Ranma, most people wouldn't see anything. The 'light show' you are referring to was mana, pure magical energy."

"Huh?" Ranma had to think about that. "You're saying I can see magic?"

Oh, this was interesting. Watanabe-San directed, "Describe the experience to me as best as you can."

Looking thoughtful, he said, "Okay. I didn't notice anything until you closed the gaps in the design. Then the lines started to glow. It was pretty dim at first but got brighter. When you started to chant the lines brightened up to about equal to the lights on a neon sign."

The sorceress nodded. What he had described was exactly the same as how it had appeared to her. She asked, "What next?"

He said, "New, glowing lines branched off from the innermost lines on the floor but these went up, straight up. When they were around the level of top of my head they curved in and met right over my head. It looked kind of like a cage and had me worried for a moment. Then I figured that it was just made of light and I should be able to pass through it if I had to."

Considering further, "I'm not sure how I would know this, but I had the feeling that if I touched the lines of light they would feel warm. Anyway, after a few seconds the lines got wider until they met, making a kind of dome-topped tube around me. The light the tube was made of was still showing all the colors."

"Then something odd happened," he noted. "To my sides the surface of the tube began to bulge out until on my right it was like a statue of my girl form and on my left like a statue of my male form. They were hollow and it was like looking at the inside of a hollow statue."

"Then the tube I was in started to turn. After it was moving pretty fast, it started to shrink. It shrank until it finally touched me. It was when it touched that I could feel the warmth and the tingling like I was changing forms. As the tube shrank and moved inside my body it was like I was pulled inside of my mind."

"After a while I found myself in a room in front of the two statues again. This time they were complete statues instead of just the front parts. They looked like they were made of glass or some kind of plastic that was partly clear but sort of frosty so you could see light through it."

"Translucent," said the sorceress.

"What?"

She explained, "You need to expand your vocabulary. Translucent is the word for something that light can shine through but you can't see through. If it was perfectly clear it would be transparent."

"Oh," he responded. "Ok, the statues looked like they were made of some translucent material. In between them was a tall box-like thing, sort of like they put stuff on in museums." He'd never actually been in a museum, but he'd seen pictures of them on TV.

She supplied, "That's a pedestal."

"Right," he agreed. "On the pedestal there was a switch that looked like a lever. It had a long handle and looked like it was designed to move like this." He moved his hand to illustrate. "The switch was over to the side where the male statue was and the statue was glowing with a soft white light. On the wall behind the statues I could see something that I just knew was a countdown timer."

Oh, that was interesting. Ms. Watanabe asked, "Do you know what the timer was for?"

He nodded. "It was showing the 'free' time I had left before I was at risk of a random sex-change when my mind wanders."

She inclined her head a moment in thought. "That sounds like it would be useful."

After a moment to consider she said, "Part of what you describe is how the spell would look to me if I was inside it. Part of that is not in the spell as I designed it. Most people have no sense of magic at all. Some magic folks call them 'muggles' but I prefer the term 'mundane'."

The boy confessed, "I've never heard the word 'muggle' before."

She shrugged. "It's sort of a made up word to separate people who can do magic from those who can't. The word 'mundane' is a real word that mostly means 'dull and ordinary.' There are people who can see magic but not use it. That makes them not magical but not fully mundane. However, you can use magic."

"What do you mean I can use magic? How could I do that?" He was confused.

She elaborated, "That 'control room' in your mind wasn't part of the spell. You took control of the magic and set that up yourself. Normally I'd say taking control of a spell in progress would be a dangerous thing, but at the time you did that, the actual business of the spell was done. You took control of the residual magical energy and added a little bit of your own."

He brightened. "Does that mean I can learn that clothing swap spell?"

Ms. Watanabe smiled, "It does indeed. From what I've learned today, I'd say you have the potential to be a powerful white mage. White magic is very strong in the healing arts."

The pigtailed boy grinned, "Since I want to be a doctor, that's really handy."

Laughing, the sorceress replied, "Yes, that works out very well."

He frowned. "I'm guessing that before we can we can start the lessons on the clothing swap, I need to have an outfit in stuff space." It would be a good idea anyway, he reminded himself.

With a chuckle, the older woman confirmed, "That would help."

Ms. Watanabe stood up and said, "Well that seems to be about all we can accomplish for now. Let's get you those books you wanted and then you can go home. Remember to come back tomorrow with a change of clothes in your stuff space. It might be a good idea to have more than one outfit. If you learn the spell as quickly as I think you will, you might want to practice by switching between a variety of outfits."

After they left the workshop, the shopkeeper went to another room and from this one she got a stack of five books. The more 'main stream' books came from the shop area at the front of the store. After paying for the books he stowed them in stuff space.

After he got outside and had leapt to the top of a building, Ranma checked his mental timer and noted that there wasn't much time left before he was at risk of turning female without willing it. He mentally flipped the switch so the handle went over to the female side and felt the tingle of change.

Ranma looked down at herself and grinned. To be able to change without water wasn't as nice as not changing at all, but she'd take what she could get. Hopefully this meant she was no longer a water magnet. That would stop water accidents, but it wouldn't stop the idiots at school from throwing buckets of water, water balloons and shooting water guns at her. She hoped it wouldn't take too long for them to learn that she couldn't be changed with water any more.

She resisted the urge to go to Ucchan's to find out how Noriko's conversation with the chef had gone. It would probably best to let the girl calm down after being told that Ranma thought of her as nothing more than a friend. No, she would go back to the hotel for now, and maybe she would also stop in the park to work on some katas on her way back.

A little earlier in the day Noriko leapt down to the sidewalk a short way from Ucchan's Okonomiyaki. She paused to look around and thought to herself that the people in Nerima were perhaps a little too inured to the odd and unusual. None of the passersby seemed to take notice of her beyond the attention they would normally pay to any girl of her beauty.

The blonde girl walked the rest of the way and pushed through the door of the restaurant. A chime announced her entrance. It was early enough in the afternoon that the tail end of the lunch rush was still being served. There were still quite a number people in the place.

After waiting for a while a pretty waitress in a kimono came up to Noriko and led her to a table. The blonde said, "I'll have a squid and shrimp Okonomiyaki and some tea, Jasmine tea if you have it. I realize you're busy right now, but could you ask Ms. Kuonji to come talk to me when she has a free moment?"

The waitress glanced toward the kitchen. "Well, the lunch rush doesn't usually last much later. I would guess she would be available in about a half an hour. In the mean time you may enjoy your meal."

Noriko said, "Thank you Mr. Kenzan."

Konatsu gave the pretty blonde haired girl a probing look. This customer knew his name and knew that he was a boy. He didn't remember ever seeing this girl before, yet she seemed to know that he was a man in spite of the very effective disguise he wore. On top of that the girl knew Konatsu's family name.

The young kunoichi turned in the order and told Ukyo, "The woman at table seven asks to talk to you when you have some time free."

"Sure thing, Sugar," the chef answered. Then she stopped and looked at her waitress. "Something's bothering you, Ko-chan. What's up?"

The Ninja frowned and looked back toward where the blonde was sitting. "That woman knew my family name. She called me _MR_. Kenzan. Besides that, even though I could swear I've never seen her before, there is something oddly familiar about her."

The chef shrugged. "Then I guess I'd better talk to her." She poured the batter for the order.

A little later Noriko was savoring her meal. Ukyo really did make one of the best okonomiyaki in Japan. From her time as Happosai, she knew of a place in Tomobiki that had a good reputation. She would have to go check them out again now that her taste buds were renewed.

It turned out to be a little longer than Konatsu had predicted before Ukyo was free to come and talk to her. The chef walked up to the table and said, "Hello, I'm Kuonji Ukyo. My waitress said you wished to talk to me."

Noriko bowed her head. "Yes, thank you. I know you're a busy woman. I should preface what I came say by telling you that you and I have met before, but I've changed a lot since then."

The chef was confused. She said, "Well, I'm sure I don't remember meeting you before. Although I get a feeling of something familiar about you. Maybe like someone I saw a picture of or maybe saw on TV."

The blonde smiled and said, "Trust me, we have met before. Although to be honest, it feels like it was another lifetime. I've come to talk to you about Saotome Ranma."

"Ranchan?" The chef exclaimed. "Is he back?"

The blonde nodded. "Yes, he is back. He is taking care of some business in another part of town. I'm here to take care of some more business on his behalf."

The Chef looked angry. "Business? What kind of business. Are you another fiancée?"

"No, I'm not." She added in thought, "_At least not formally_. _I would like to change that_."

"Then what are you to my Ranchan?" The chef demanded.

The blonde remained cal. Ukyo thought it was a rather irritating calm demeanor. She asked, "What do you know of the reason why Ranma left?"

Why wouldn't this infuriating woman just answer a direct question? "All the Tendos said he went to help out a sick friend."

Noriko took a sip of her tea, then asked, "Do you know who the friend was?"

Ukyo shook her head. "I don't know. There was some silly rumor that Happosai was dying and Ranchan was taking him to China for Jusenkyo girl curse water to save him."

The former man smiled a little. "Yes, that does seem silly, doesn't it? The only problem with calling it that is that the rumor is true."

"What?" The brunette wasn't sure she could trust what she was hearing. "What do you know about it?"

The blonde took another sip of her tea and said, "The full story is rather long. The short version is that Happosai was actually born a girl, but her father wanted a boy so he got a witch to change the child into a boy at the age of one month. In addition to the spell that changed the child's sex was a curse that turned him into that little gnomelike creature you are familiar with when he hit puberty. He's been looking for a way to fix that for a long time."

She continued, "Recently Happosai lost the ability to absorb the female ki that he got from fondling women and touching their underwear. Ranma was able to do a ki transfer when in girl form and keep the old man alive. They did go to China to get some girl water. They used it and turned the shriveled up old gnome of a man into a pretty blonde haired girl."

"Blonde?" The chef looked confused. "Wait a minute! Are you saying _you're_ Happosai?"

Noriko grinned. "I know. It seems unbelievable, doesn't it? I _was _Happosai, but I don't want to use that name anymore. I'm calling myself Tendo Noriko as a tribute to an old friend who died a long time ago."

Ukyo shook her head. "No, I don't believe it! That shriveled up old prune of a man couldn't turn into a girl like you. It's impossible!"

The blonde reached over and patted the brunette on the shoulder in what looked like it was intended to be a comforting manner. She said, "Calm down. Now if you need proof…" She dropped something onto the tabletop that looked like a long bandage that had been loosely coiled. The former man said, "You always were something of a challenge, wearing those bindings instead of a regular bra." 

Ukyo suddenly became aware that the feeling of compression that she was used to was missing. She put her hands over her breasts and felt them now unfettered, but still covered by her shirt. She knew of only one person who could do what had just been done.

The brunette fixed her customer with a glare. "Ok, so you are… or at least were Happosai. I don't know anyone else who can do that." 

Noriko chuckled. "Actually I taught Ranma how that trick works. I explained to him that the original technique was developed so a martial artist could steal weapons and armor from an opponent, making them more vulnerable to punches and kicks. Stealing underwear makes good practice, though."

Ukyo's glare intensified and she dropped her hands back to the tabletop. She said, "You're getting off the subject. What did you want to tell me about Ranchan?" She was _not_ going to fantasize about her Ranchan stripping her underwear off before she took off her outer clothes in preparation for _fun_ in bed. At least not now.

The former man said, "Ranma and I were stuck in China for a few weeks while we waited for Nabiki to make up a new passport for me that goes with my new face and gender. We had time to talk a lot and the subject of the fiancés naturally came up. After he got over his initial distrust for me, he opened up and told me things."

The brunette held up a hand to cut off any further pronouncements. "If Ranchan wants us to go ahead and get married or if he wants to break things off, he should come here to tell me himself."

Noriko looked down at the teacup on the table and laughed. "A problem that Ranma has is that sometimes he is too kind hearted. It is the same problem that has caused the whole fiancé mess to drag on as long as it has."

Now puzzled Ukyo asked, "How is having a kind heart a problem?"

"Think about it," the blonde challenged. "Ranma could have told Shampoo to get lost a long time ago if he wasn't afraid he would hurt her feelings."

The girl had a point, thought Ukyo. Suddenly, a feeling of dread seized her. What did this girl want to tell her that Ranma couldn't, for fear of hurting her feelings?

Finally, after she had gathered her nerve, Ukyo asked, "What do you want to tell me that Ranchan can't bring himself to tell me in person?"

Swirling the remnant of her tea around in the bottom of the cup, Noriko tried to think of a way to phrase it in a way that wouldn't do more harm than needed. "Ranma does love you… as a friend, maybe even a sister."

"No!"

The blonde waited but nothing more seemed to be coming after the one word protest. She went on, "Ranma has fond memories of the time you fought over okonomiyaki when you were kids. He thought of you as a pal, a buddy, one of the guys. Even he admits he was pretty clueless back then. When you came to school and he found out you were a girl, he adjusted his thinking enough to recognize that, as a girl, you were pretty cute."

The former man paused to see if her audience was going to say anything. Ukyo seemed to be smiling over the comment on her cuteness. Noriko continued, "The problem is that, while in his mind he accepts the idea that you are a girl, it hasn't reached his heart. There he still sees you as a buddy and can't accept the idea of romance with you."

A scowl settled on to the brunette's face. "No! Ranchan loves me and I love him. We're going to get married and live together for the rest of our lives."

Noriko shook her head sadly. Ukyo seemed to have something of a blind spot in this area. The blonde asked, "In this happy dream of a married life do you picture Ranma working with you in a restaurant like this one? Do picture him as being the man to your wife? Where does his curse fit into this picture?"

"Of course we'd run a restaurant," the chef protested. "We'd cook okonomiyaki and study martial arts. We'd teach both to our children."

The former man nodded. "It seems like a pleasant enough future you have planned, at least for you. Have you ever asked Ranma if spending the rest of his life working in a restaurant is what he wants to do with his future?"

"Of course," She insisted. "He'd love it." Noriko noted that the chef didn't sound quite as sure of herself as she had before.

Noriko thought about it for a moment before saying, "Then it would seem that you don't know Ranma as well as you think you do. When we were in China, waiting for my papers, Ranma helped out at a local medical clinic. He discovered that he loves helping people and he would like to become a doctor."

"A doctor!" Ukyo couldn't believe what she was hearing. "What about martial arts? I can't believe that Ranchan would abandon the Art to become a doctor." Even as she said it, she had to wonder. With that kind heart and love of helping people, something like that _would_ be in character for her Ranchan.

The older woman shook her head again. "No, Ranma doesn't want to give up the Art completely. He would continue martial arts as a hobby, like Dr. Tofu does."

"A hobby!" Ukyo shook her head in disbelief. "How could he switch from it being the whole focus of his life just like that? And you are okay with this? You're the Grand Master of his School. You'd be losing him as an heir. What about that?"

The blonde shrugged. "I'm young again. The issue of an heir isn't as urgent as it used to be. If Ranma doesn't want to be the heir, then maybe one of his children will want to. Or maybe I can find someone else. I have time to work on it."

Before Ukyo could come up with another question, Noriko pressed on, "If being a doctor is what will make Ranma happy, then that is what I want too. I don't care about whether he makes the Art a hobby or if he gave it up completely."

Something finally penetrated Ukyo's consciousness. There was a certain look on Noriko's face when she spoke about Ranma. She had a tone to her voice that said things that the words spoken didn't. The look in her eyes spoke volumes when the chef was able to notice.

Such a thing shouldn't be possible. This woman was once reputed to be the most perverted man in Japan. She had been a selfish man who didn't care for anything but his own pleasures and the continuation of his martial arts school. Could Ukyo be reading it wrong? 

"You love him, don't you?" The chef was afraid of the answer she would get.

The other woman shook her head. "I couldn't believe it either when I first realized it. It first started right after I changed into a woman. At that time I wasn't strong enough to leap from tree to tree, so Ranma had to carry me. I found myself liking being held in his arms. Then when I dreamed about him kissing me I realized that I was attracted to him physically. I thought it was just the hormones from my body being female for the first time in centuries. Then I realized that I was attracted to her as well as him."

The chef's mouth was opening and closing in a good imitation of a fish.

Noriko went on, "At the house we were staying at, our hostess put is in separate beds in the same bedroom. We talked a lot and it was in those conversations that I discovered that what I felt for Ranma was more than just the attraction of a woman for an attractive man or even another attractive woman. I love _him_."

She was lost in contemplation with a dreamy expression on her face. "I love his kind heart, his loyalty and his courage. I love the way he wants to help others. I love the way he rubs the back of his neck when he's embarrassed and the way he scratches the base of his pigtail when he's confused…"

"OKAY! I get it!" The brunette shouted, drawing the attention of several members of the thinning crowd of patrons in the restaurant. Ukyo had the grace to look embarrassed at making a scene.

In a quieter tone, the chef said, "I get it. You love him. You want to take him away from me." The last was in a tone of sullen resentment.

Noriko shook her head. "I'm sorry if I gave you that impression. Yes, I do love him. However, unlike some other people I could name, I care more about his happiness than my own. I could put it down to the unusual combination of an old mind in a young body. I can feel the urges that teenage hormones can give, but I can think about them with a mature perspective."

"What's your point, old hag?" Ukyo demanded.

The blonde frowned at the "hag" reference. The brunette was upset, so Noriko decided to let it go. Besides, throwing insults back wouldn't help matters. "Well, if it would make Ranma happy, I'd like nothing better than to stand by his side as he goes through medical school and later in a career as a doctor. I'd support him and encourage him. I'd even be the mother of his children if that's what he wants. And believe me when I say that seemed like such a foreign concept to me when it first crossed my mind. Now I find it growing on me."

She held up a hand to forestall the argument Ukyo looked ready to begin. "Please notice I said 'If it would make Ranma happy.' If I thought he'd be happier married to you, I would bend every effort toward getting the two of you together. I'm not going to do that because I don't believe that what you want is best for him. Your vision of the future would stifle his spirit. He'd become unhappy and possibly even come to hate you. It might not happen right away, but eventually there would be arguments and you would end up unhappy as well. I would predict that you would end up getting divorced."

The former man felt ready to sum up. "I think you need to give some careful and (for a change) unselfish thought to this matter. What do you think would be best for Ranma? Personally, I see two possible courses. One of those would be for you to step back and content yourself with just being a friend. Continue on with your life and support Ranma as much as you can as a friend. If you still insist you must marry him then you should consider giving up some or all your dream to help him follow his. If you do otherwise you risk losing him as both a friend as well as a future husband."

She stood up. "Take some time and think about it carefully. Ranma will be by next week to ask what you have decided. By the way, I haven't told Ranma how I feel about him. I will wait to see if he comes to see it for himself and hopefully finds he has similar feelings. I care enough about his feelings that I am not going to add to the pressure on him." 

"Pressure?" While Ukyo was smart enough to recognize what sort of pressure cooker Ranma's life was, she wanted to learn what this woman had to say on the subject.

At that Noriko sat back down. "Don't you believe Ranma is under pressure? How about, 'Ranma must marry Akane. The schools must be joined.'" She didn't exactly match the voice of Tendo Soun but got the tone, and mannerisms perfect.

She went on in an imitation of Genma, "Why have I been cursed with such an ungrateful, disgraceful son?" In a perfect copy of Nodoka's voice she said, "Insulting your fiancé is not very manly, Son."

She went on, "Wo Di Airen! Ranma go on date with Shampoo?" In an imitation of Cologne's voice, "You will marry Shampoo, Son-in-Law." She next did Kodachi, "Oh, my darling Ranma-Sama." Then again, "Ranma No Hentai!" Pantomiming the swinging of a mallet, she said, "Wham!"

She shook her head again. "Let us not forget the rivals." She did a good imitation of Kuno, "Fear not, fair one, I shall free my pigtailed goddess from the enslavement of the vile sorcerer Saotome." As Ryoga she said, "Saotome Ranma, prepare to die!" Then as Mousse, "How dare you try to take my Shampoo away from me."

"I've saved one of the best for last," Noriko stated. In a perfect copy of Ukyo, the blonde said, "You have to marry me, Ranchan. I'm the cute fiancé."

Once again Noriko stood. She said, "Do you want to continue being part of the problem or are you willing to take a try at being part of the solution? Think about it and try to have an answer for Ranma when he comes by next week. Oh, by the way, the okonomiyaki was excellent. Thank you."

Before Noriko could walk to the door out of the building Ukyo tried one final sally. "What about my Pop's yattai? Genma accepted the dowry! Ranchan has to marry me. He's honor bound!"

The blonde stepped back to the table as she reached into stuff space and a moment later something thumped onto the table in front of Ukyo. The chef looked to see what appeared to be a thick magazine with pictures of restaurant equipment on the cover.

"Thank you for reminding me. What you see there is a catalog from a company that makes and sells restaurant equipment. From page 110 to 125, among the ovens and deep fat fryers, they carry yattai. The selections range from a small unit for a street corner vendor that is suitable for heating up prepackaged foods up to a mobile restaurant you'd need a truck to tow around."

She continued, "When Genma took your father's yattai I was trapped in a cave, so I have no idea where the original cart may be or if it would still be useable if it could be found. Since I have no way to give you back the old yattai, I would be willing to buy you a replacement. Ranma promised that he would pay me back for it after he starts getting paying patients. If you don't pick one, I have another copy of the catalog. I'll pick out the cart that is closest to what Ranma remembers of the old one and buy that. I can have it delivered here in no more than three weeks."

She didn't add that this was also included as a clause in Happosai's will. There was also included the provision that Ukyo could request the value of the yattai in cash so she could use it to upgrade the equipment in her existing restaurant. Before putting that option on the table, she wanted to wait and see what the chef decided about accepting a new yattai.

The chef was doing her fish imitation again. Noriko rolled her eyes, "With the replacement of the yattai, the dowry is returned and the marriage agreement is rendered null and void. That puts the possible marriage on the basis it should be, whether or not the boy and girl both want it. I've already told you Ranma's thoughts on the subject."

The blonde glanced over to see Konatsu bussing a table on the far side of the restaurant. She turned back to Ukyo and said, "I know you think it is unfair that you love someone who doesn't love you back. Before you start thinking of the injustice of that, look at your waitress."

Now looking confused, Ukyo demanded, "What's Konatsu have to do with it?" 

"Why do you think the boy keeps working for you?" She asked. "It certainly isn't because of the high pay and great benefits. You pay him what would almost amount to slave wages and include food and a storeroom to sleep in. No, he stays because he is desperately in love with you."

"You're imagining things," insisted the chef.

"Am I?" The former man shook her head. "That boy aids you in your pursuit of Ranma because he cares more about your happiness than his own. You've allowed yourself to become so involved with your obsession over Ranma that you've turned a blind eye to any other possible romances."

She studied the chef's face for a moment. "You do tend to throw yourself into things with determination and passion. Spending ten years studying martial arts and cooking on the chance of meeting up with Ranma to gain revenge shows that. The fact that you were able to give up that obsession to refocus on a new one of getting married to Ranma, shows that you can change. Maybe you should open your eyes to the possibilities around you and see what has been waiting right in front of you."

With a grin and in a slightly mischievous tone, Noriko said, "I tend to think that the girl who dresses as a boy and a boy who dresses as a girl might make a good couple. It would probably be a better couple than a girl who dresses as a boy with a boy who actually changes into a girl. Think about Ranma's girl form and ask yourself if you would enjoy intimate relations with another girl."

This time Noriko didn't pause as she walked out of the restaurant.

After she leapt to the roof of a building across the street she paused to look at the front of the building that housed the restaurant. That actually went better than she had expected. She had half expected Ukyo to go into a fit of screaming and order her out of the place or possibly to assault her with a battle spatula.

In some of their conversations back at Lo Shen's house, Ranma had commented to Noriko that Ukyo was likely the sanest, most level-headed of the fiancés. Her own assessment was that being less crazy than the rest didn't mean you were sane.

Thinking about her comment on pressure, Noriko had to be honest and include herself as Happosai in the pressure that Ranma had been under. She hoped that she was no longer contributing to that. She was doing all she could to relieve the pressure now.

It had been a surprise when the chef turned out to perceptive enough to recognize Noriko's own feelings. She just had to hope that the younger girl was also perceptive enough to see the total sincerity that Noriko used to express what she hoped for Ranma's future.

As she leapt from roof to roof, Noriko contemplated what she was going to say to the Amazons the following day. It seemed likely that Shampoo was a lost cause. There was little chance the girl would be swayed by argument. The person to work on was Cologne. If Cologne ordered it, Shampoo would back off. She wouldn't like it, but she would obey. At least Noriko hoped so.

In a comfortable apartment in Juuban, Mizuno Ami returned home after her adventure as a Senshi that day. She was pleased to note that her mother was at home.

After the usual pleasantries of greeting, Ami asked, "Mother, do you remember telling me a story about treating a young martial artist whose father couldn't pay you."

Over the years there had been more than one patient who couldn't pay, but she thought she knew the one her daughter was referring to. "Do you mean the man who offered his son to be married to you?"

"Yes," the blue haired girl confirmed. "What was the boy's name?"

She hadn't thought about it for a while so it took some thought to remember. "I think his name was Saotome Rama or something like it. I could look it up if you like. I still have the contract the father drew up. I filed it away years ago, but never threw it out."

"Could that name be Ranma, by any chance?" pressed Ami.

Her expression now quizzical the doctor responded, "Now that you mention it, I believe that was his name. Why do you ask?"

"I met a martial artist named Saotome Ranma today," the young genius explained. "He seemed quite skilled in the martial arts and I wondered if he might be the same boy you spoke of before."

The older woman shrugged. "I suppose it is possible. But even if he is the same boy, I would advise you not to take that promise of betrothal too seriously. I know I didn't."

Her own expression now quizzical, Ami wanted to know, "What do you mean you didn't take it seriously? If that was the case, why would you keep the contract?"

Mrs. Mizuno shrugged again. "I don't know, I guess I thought it might be good for a laugh after you got to a marriageable age."

Her manner turning serious, the older woman explained, "I have met men who were too proud to ask for charity. Some of them offered to work doing odd jobs to repay me for their medical bills. The offer of betrothal of his son to my daughter was a new variation on the theme, but I went along with it to avoid wounding the father's pride."

She shook her head and then resumed, "I knew, and I feel sure the father knew that I knew I'd probably never see either of them again."

Suddenly a smile appeared on the doctor's face and she asked her daughter, "So you've met him, have you? Is he handsome?"

A blush bloomed on the girl's cheeks. "Mother!"

Dr. Mizuno chuckled and said, "I thought as much. Dear, if you feel attracted to the boy, then talk to him. I would advise that you don't pay too much heed to the advice to those boy crazy girls, Minako and Makoto. They've both shown they can't keep a boyfriend."

Still feeling embarrassed at being caught out so easily, Ami just replied, "Uh, right."

The doctor advised, "It would probably be a bad idea to make reference to the marriage agreement between me and the boy's father."

"Why would you say that?" Ami wondered.

"Call it a hunch, if you like," the older woman responded. "From the way the father put forth the proposal, I got the impression that he had made such an offer before, maybe many times before. If that is the case then this Ranma may be 'promised in marriage' to other girls and maybe to a lot of them."

Catching the implication, the younger girl nodded. "So you think he may be wary of girls approaching him, claiming to be fiancées, is that it?"

"I'm afraid so," her mother confirmed.

Letting out a sigh, Ami finally said, "Well, I was more curious than anything. I got the impression that Saotome-san may just have been visiting Juuban and not living here. If that's the case, I doubt I would see him again."

Her expression a little sad, Dr. Mizuno sighed in response. "I suppose so. I'm a little surprised to hear you talking about this boy. A martial artist is not the sort of boy I would have expected you to be attracted to."

Blushing again, Ami confessed, "I wouldn't have expected it either. But there was something about him, a presence, that seemed fascinating. It was like there was much more to him than meets the eye."

Author's Note: Ranma now has greater control over his curse. He is hoping that this will translate into greater control of his life. It turns out that Ranma has magic that he never suspected before. Ukyo has been told of Ranma's true feelings and of his hopes for the future. Will she accept it? Does she really have a choice? Stay tuned to find out how this develops.

What's this? A parent who doesn't take one of Genma's betrothal agreements seriously? It could be because Dr. Mizuno is more intelligent than most of the people the panda man scammed, or maybe she's just more of a realist. Will Ami's interest interfere in the budding relationship between Ranma and Noriko? Stay tuned to find out.


	15. Chapter 15 More Magic

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 14

More Magic

On her way back toward the hotel from Ukyo's restaurant, Noriko decided to head for the park where she and Ranma had sparred before. If he had finished his business in Juuban, it was still early enough in the day that the boy was likely to want to get in some training.

When she got there, Noriko found that she had guessed right. The odd thing that she noticed was that Ranma was in girl form. While she wondered why that was the case, she didn't stop the session to ask about it. Instead, she jumped into the training session and it turned from solo training to sparring.

As they sparred, the martial arts grand master thought about how good Ranma really was. When she was Happosai, she would have resisted giving the boy the credit he was due. Now she knew she would sign his teaching certificate after the work was done to get the Grand Mastership of Tendo Noriko recognized. She had specified it in her... that is Happosai's will.

After about an hour of sparring, they stopped. It was getting on toward dinner time and they needed to get back to the hotel. Before they left the park Noriko asked, "How did things go at the bookstore?"

Ranma answered, "She had most of the books I was looking for. Two of the ones on the list she didn't have and she suggested that I look for them on the Internet. She said that by doing that I could probably get those two books as fast as she could."

The blonde nodded. "Did you ask her about getting your curse trigger changed?"

The redhead grinned and held up an index finger. She instructed, "Watch this." With not a drop of water of any temperature, her body changed from female to male.

The former man's eyebrows went up in surprise. She asked, "She changed your trigger already? That was fast."

Nodding vigorously and grinning, Ranma agreed, "Yeah! It turns out that the spell she used is one she created herself. She didn't need to look it up other than to get an ingredients list of stuff she needed to do the spell. Besides the ability to change at will, I got a sort of mental timer that tells me how much time I have left before I'm at risk of changing randomly when my mind wanders."

Impressed, Noriko smiled, saying, "That sounds useful."

"That's not all," the excited young man continued. "She's going to teach me a spell that will let me change clothes when I change form. It's a short range teleportation spell that swaps the clothes I'm wearing for an outfit I have in stuff space. No more getting caught as a guy in girl's clothing. Besides that I'll finally be able to wear clothes that actually fit my girl side."

"She's going to teach you the spell?" The blonde wasn't too sure about that. "So you _do_ have any magic talent?" She had already believed it, but it was nice having the confirmation.

"Yep, turns out I do," confirmed the grinning pigtailed martial artist. "When she was casting the spell I was able to see the magic energy. Watanabe-san said I have a natural magic talent and that I actually used her magic to create that timer myself. She also said it should be easy for me to learn the clothing swap spell and other stuff as well. I can learn magic healing. She said I have the potential to be a white mage."

The older girl got a warm smile on her face. "I'm impressed. If you can combine white magecraft with being a medical doctor you will have a potent combination."

"Oh, I should tell you about what else happened when I was in Juuban," the young man said.

Puzzled, Noriko asked, "You did something besides going to the bookstore?"

Ranma nodded. "Before I got to the store I heard explosions and went to see what was making the noise. It turns out the Sailor Senshi were fighting some kind of rock monsters. Since I haven't gotten the toughening in male form, I had to use Iron Skin to use the Breaking Point, but I took out two of the three monsters and the Senshi took out the last one. The Senshi I met there were what they called the Inners."

He laughed. "My luck was running about like it usually does. While I was getting the Inner Senshi to write their autographs in my notebook (for Akane) three of the Outers showed up right when a small rain shower changed me into a girl."

The blonde laughed, "Let me guess, when they saw you change they thought you were a monster and attacked you."

"Yep," agreed the pigtailed boy. "They had me hopping pretty good trying to dodge their attacks. Well… dodging all but one. That one hurt. I kept trying to tell them I wasn't their enemy but they wouldn't listen, especially Sailor Uranus. I still don't know what kind of monster a Starlight is supposed to be, but that's what she thought I was. I was at the point where I was just about to throw a Moku Takabisha at them when Sailor Pluto showed up and yelled at the Outers to stop attacking me."

Noriko frowned, "Pluto stopped the fight? I met her about 80 years ago when I stole a bra from her. I got a really huge energy boost from that one. But we got to talking after she calmed down. She didn't seem like the type that would break up a fight like you described. I'd have thought she would have let it run just to see how well you did against her teammates." Silently she added, "_It would have been a good lesson for them to see that their fancy magic attacks are no match for a truly strong, skilled martial artist_."

Ranma shrugged. "I don't know about that. She was really respectful to me. She even brought a thermos of hot water to change me back. On top of that she brought some clothes to replace the ones that got wrecked in the fight with the rock monsters. It's like she knew in advance that the fight would take place."

The older girl's eyes went wide as she contemplated that. "That seems out of character for Sailor Pluto. Most of the time she acts aloof and all-knowing because she has a source of information from the future."

The pigtailed boy made a helpless gesture with his hands. "Hey that was how she was. She said I was an ally and they shouldn't be attacking me."

He paused then added, "Watanabe-san said this shirt had a scent of magic to it."

Noriko reached out and rubbed the hem of the shirt's short sleeve between thumb and forefinger. After a moment she let go of the sleeve and said, "Well the sorceress was right about the scent of magic. But there is something else here. You know that people leave ki traces on the clothes they wear, right?"

"Sure, that's how you could get ki from the women's underwear you used to steal," Ranma answered.

"Right," agreed Noriko, her expression thoughtful. "The odd thing is that the ki trace on this shirt is yours. It's almost like Pluto got this shirt from you in the future."

The teen martial artist said in a thoughtful tone, "Maybe I'll work with the Senshi in the future. Maybe that's why she seemed to know stuff about me." He shook his head and decided that it was something to be considered in greater detail later.

After a pause, he started to laugh. "Even while I was getting autographs from the Senshi to give to Akane, I'm sure I was close to getting asked for my autograph. One of the Inners and one of the Outers are martial arts otaku and were almost as excited about meeting me as Akane would have been meeting them."

"That's fortunate," commented Noriko. "Well, if you have to go back to Juuban for lessons on that clothing swap spell, then I guess there is a chance that you will meet with the Senshi again. That area does seem to be where they are seen most often."

At that moment Ranma's stomach let out a fierce growl. "Uh… could we continue this conversation in the restaurant at the hotel? I sort of missed lunch."

"Oh, you poor, poor man," Noriko joked. "At least I had okonomiyaki for lunch."

As they started walking toward the hotel, Ranma commented, "When we get to the restaurant, you'll have to tell me how that went."

Before they got back to the hotel, Ranma changed back to a girl. She said, "I want to be able to spend most of the day tomorrow as a guy. I'm also going to sleep as a girl."

When they were in a booth in the restaurant Ranma asked between bites, "How did it go with Ucchan?"

Noriko's expression became thoughtful. "I guess I could say it went better than I expected. I sort of expected to get bashed with a giant spatula and tossed out the door. She did do some yelling, but at least she listened."

At the thought of Ukyo using her battle spatula on Noriko, Ranma felt a brief rush of anger. He didn't like the idea of his oldest friend beating up on his newest one even if he was pretty sure Noriko could have handled Ukyo easily. He dismissed the feelings to concentrate on what Noriko was saying.

The blonde said, "I left her the restaurant supplies catalog. I told her she should pick out whichever yattai she wanted and I'd buy it for her. If she doesn't pick one then I'll buy the one that comes as close to the original as you can remember it. I'll have that one delivered to her at the Ucchan's. That ends the honor agreement for you two to marry and any future arrangement for such things are strictly between you and her with no need for parents to be involved."

A look of concern on her face, Ranma asked, "You did tell her that I still want her as a friend (and just a friend,) didn't you?"

The older girl smiled warmly. "I told her." Her expression sobered. "I have heard of many occasions where romance ruined a friendship. I honestly hope that this is not one of those."

The redhead shook her head. "I wonder if this would have been simpler if Ucchan had really been a guy like I thought she was when we were kids."

Noriko studied the condiment containers on the table for a moment. "I don't know what to tell you about that. It might have been better, but then he might have fallen for your girl side and you'd have the same problem. With 'what ifs' it's really hard to say. The only thing anyone can say with certainty is that things would have worked out differently."

The blonde seemed to brighten. "Before I left, I told her something that should plant a seed of thought in her mind."

"What did you tell her?" Ranma wanted to know.

The former man chuckled. "I pointed out to her that Konatsu is in love with her. Maybe that will help her get over you."

"She didn't know that?" Ranma found it a little hard to believe.

"Apparently not," agreed Noriko.

The redhead shook her head, but smirked. "I know I'm not always the most sensitive person, but even I could see that."

The red haired girl remembered she had something more to tell about her visit to Juuban. "Watanabe-San said she would have to do some research into Ms. Hinako's condition. She didn't know what to do about it."

With a sigh the blonde said, "Well, it was a bit of a long shot but it was worth asking. Who knows, maybe she will find something. Maybe you'll find something in your medical or magical studies."

She paused as another thought occurred to her and asked, "Have you thought what to do about Kuno?"

Ranma frowned. "I'm not sure if anything _can_ be done about him. He seems to always find ways to deny anything that doesn't match what he sees as the truth. I've changed right in front of him and he just says 'Saotome is a foul sorcerer who has used magic to _appear_ to change.' He's right about the magic but he thinks that the transformation is really a substitution. Any more demonstrations of me changing would do no good. He believes my two forms are separate people."

Still frowning, she shook her head. "I have thought of just going up to him as the 'pigtailed girl' and telling him I hate him and to just stay away from me, but I doubt that would work."

Noriko nodded. "I can figure that one out. He would just say that the 'foul sorcerer Saotome had enchanted his "pigtailed goddess" so you couldn't express your true feelings.' Was that about what you had in mind?"

Her expression sour, Ranma nodded. "I'm starting to think the only way I'm going to get him off my back is to get a restraining order. You know, one of those 'don't get any closer than a dozen meters' or something like that. I doubt that would stop him from harassing me, but at least I could get have him arrested if he violated the order."

The blonde sighed. "I hope it doesn't come to that. You might just have to live with it until you can go to University. If you're going to medical school, I doubt that he will be going to the same college."

The redhead hung her head. "I'm just getting tired of fighting him. When I first met him there was at least some challenge, but I've advanced faster than he has. He's no challenge at all anymore. If things keep going the way they have I could end up hurting him badly. When I want to be a healer, I'd feel really bad about that."

"I had a thought," Noriko said. "If Kuno won't accept the truth, maybe you need to stop telling the truth."

"What do you mean?"

"I know you don't like lying," Noriko began. Silently she added, "_Not mention you aren't very good at it_." Out loud she continued, "I was just thinking that some kind of deception might be needed. Maybe we could work out a lie that Kuno could accept."

"What did you have in mind," asked the redhead.

The plan was beginning to evolve in Noriko's mind. She said, "Maybe you could do the Ranko/Ranma dodge. The difference would be you'd tell Kuno that Ranko is your twin sister."

Ranma nodded. "Even if I don't like lying, it might be worth a try. Before I try to think too much about that, I need to settle things with the Amazons. After them I need to confront the Tendos and my parents. Depending on how that turns out, I may end up leaving Nerima or even Japan completely. If that happens, then none of the rest of it matters."

Noriko nodded. "You have a point. I was thinking that we would go to Nekohanten in the afternoon to catch them between lunch and dinner rushes. Depending on how long it takes there we could plan on going to the Tendo dojo in the evening. On the Kuno problem, I'll keep thinking about it. Maybe I can come up with a way to make him accept the truth."

She let out a sigh. "I have the hotel room booked through tomorrow night. If things don't go well with the Tendos and your parents, we can come back and stay here tomorrow night. We should take our stuff with us. If things do work out, we'll spend the night at the Tendo place and I can return the keys to the hotel the next day."

Ranma shook her head. "If things don't work out with the Tendos and my parents, I guess I'll be going back to China. Lo Shen said the village there would welcome me. My problem with that is that I'm not sure if that's what I want. I do want to be a doctor, but I don't know if I want to do it in a place like the village. Well I guess I'll think about it on Monday."

When she got up from the table she said, "Before we head up to the room I want go to the library. I'm going to use one of their public computers to send Po Shen an email. I want to let her know we got here safely and that we're getting ready to confront Cologne and her group."

The blonde chuckled at that. "That should be good. Lo Shen can call the Joketsuzoku and let them know that we were practically right under their noses for three whole weeks. I think that will give them their opportunity to 'tweak the noses' of their sister tribe. She can also start telling them about what an 'independent spirit' you are."

Ranma grinned. "That's what I was thinking."

She got up and headed out, As Noriko was walking toward the elevator, a voice called out from the front desk, "Miss Tendo?"

Noriko paused a moment then remembered that right now she was supposed to be Miss Tendo. Walking to the desk, she addressed the woman there, "Yes?"

"While you were out a fax came for you," the desk clerk stated. She reached under the desk and pulled out a large envelope and handed it to the blonde.

Thinking for a moment, the former man replied, "Thank you. I know who this is from. I've been expecting it. Although this was faster than I was expecting."

Taking the envelope with her, Noriko went up to the room. When she was there she bent the tabs that held the envelope closed and extracted three sheets of paper. One of those was a cover sheet, but the second was obviously the death certificate for Happosai.

The third page contained a note from Dr. Rin Se. "Here is the death certificate for the little troll. I hope the fax will be sufficient to get the lawyers at least started on pushing his will through the legal system. Just to be safe I am also mailing two certified copies of the certificate. That will give you one to keep and one to give to the lawyers."

The next paragraph said, "From conversations I had with Ranko, I got the impression that the two of you didn't plan your little 'expedition' to China all that well. Thinking of the death certificate is another example of that. Oh well, I suppose that's the sort of thing I would expect from a pair of martial artists. I hope Ranko improves on that after she begins her study into medicine."

"Give my best to Ranko," and a signature finished the note.

Noriko had to chuckle on reading the note. It fit with the attitude toward martial artists that Ranma had described. At least the doctor was being helpful. It was good to have friends. Putting the fax back into the envelope, the blonde set it aside and took up some scrolls.

She thought to herself that if things didn't work out for Ranma with the Tendos, she wasn't going to stay there. She would likely have to call a mover to clear out her stuff as there was a lot in the way of books, scrolls and the like. Some of the stuff she had accumulated could be disposed of now that she was female.

At that thought, she paused. She should probably go through her stash of pilfered undergarments and hold out any of them that would fit her new body. Since Ranma was going to be studying the clothing swap spell, it seemed likely that she would be more accepting of the thought of wearing feminine undergarments. That would make it a good idea to hold out some lingerie for Ranma's girl form as well.

The next morning at the Nekohanten everyone was bustling around getting the restaurant ready for lunch. While passing by the office, Shampoo could hear the electronic trill of a phone ringing. Looking in, she found the sound was coming from what looked like a cell phone with an unusually large antenna. She picked up the phone from its charging cradle and pressed the button marked "Talk," "This is the Nekohanten. How I help you?"

A familiar voice spoke in Mandarin from the phone, "Shan Pu? This is Elder Soap. Go get Kho Lon. I need to talk to her."

The purple haired girl set the phone on the desk, an expression of distaste on her face. Elder Soap was a grumpy old woman even worse than her Great Grandmother. She went to the door of the office and in Mandarin she called out, "Great Grandmother, Elder Soap is calling on the phone for you."

The Elder came in from the kitchen, bouncing on her staff. The young warrior was frequently amazed at how fast one of those elders could move in that manner. The girl was irritated when she was ordered, "Get back to work and close the door behind you."

When the door was closed the old woman spoke into the phone, "Soap? Kho Lon here. Do you have some news of Saotome and the old thief?"

"News? You could say that." The younger of the Elders sounded seriously annoyed. "Just a short while ago I got a call from elder Lo Shen of our sister tribe."

Cologne had a sinking feeling. "What did she tell you?"

The elder in China said, "It would seem that we were premature in congratulating ourselves over denying the old thief his goal."

The older of the elders suppressed the urge to groan. "Do we know what his goal was?"

"Oh yes." The younger elder said, "From what Lo Shen told me, the old man's goal was exactly what he told you it was. He wanted to get some Nyaniichuan water. The problem with our approach to the problem was that we were protecting the wrong places. It seems that twenty years ago, when he was in the area, the old man collected some of the cursed water and hid bottles of it in caves around the area here."

She continued, "One of our patrols, led by Ei Linah, had them, but young Saotome put up a battle aura so strong that the warriors didn't think they could beat her. They let the pair pass. We set patrols to try and intercept them when they passed through on the way back but they evaded all of our efforts."

Cologne asked, "Did Lo Shen say what the old thief wanted with the water?"

"Listen to this," directed Soap. "That little gnome of a man who has been a thorn in our sides for so long is now a pretty blond haired _girl_. I'm told she looks to be about 19 years old. For her new body, she had taken the name Tendo Noriko. She's normal sized, perhaps a little tall for a girl."

The older of the Elders sighed. "I would guess Lo Shen only called because young Son-in-Law and the new girl had already left the village."

"Oh, more than that," Soap said. "They're already back in Japan, well out of our reach. While they were here in China they were staying at Lo Shen's house."

Cologne sighed again. "I'm guessing that Lo Shen is having a good laugh about this right now."

"You can be sure of that," replied the elder in China. "If you were thinking to start searching for them, maybe at the home of the Tendos, don't bother. Young Saotome told them that he and the Tendo girl plan to visit you after lunch today. I gather they want to have a chat about Shan Pu's pursuit of the boy."

The Elder in Tokyo rubbed her forehead with her fingers. "I have thought before that this venture was becoming more costly than the possible return. Now I'm convinced of it. My great granddaughter may be infatuated with the boy, but I'm pretty sure the methods she used to approach him have ruined any chance she might have had with him. I will admit that we mishandled the boy from the start."

"Yes," agreed the younger of the elders. "We badly misjudged the boy."

Cologne said, "I will try to salvage something out of this if I can, perhaps by offering make him an ally of the tribe. According to the reports I've received, the Phoenix had been much more active after what happened with Saffron. If we can claim to have an ally such as Saotome, it might serve to keep them in check. However, I suspect that we may have to just give up on him, as much as I find that option distasteful. That will probably mean moving back to the village because I can't imagine that Shan Pu will want to give up if the boy is still anywhere close by."

"I begin to question whether your great granddaughter is a suitable candidate for leadership," the younger of the Elders commented. "She is letting her heart rule when she should be using her head instead."

The Matriarch said, "I can agree that she needs to do a lot of growing up before she is ready to be a leader. That, of course, is assuming that she lives long enough to gain the needed maturity. I worry that her impetuousness may someday lead her into making a fatal error."

"That would be a waste." Soap said, "Even if she's not ready for leadership, Shan Pu is still an excellent warrior."

"Indeed." Cologne agreed, "I may not always show it, but I'm quite fond of the child and even proud. I'm not happy with what leaving without her airen will do to her, but I don't see much choice. I'm still curious to hear what arguments they will offer. After all, it wouldn't do to give in too easily."

"Ha!" Elder Soap felt real amusement for the first time in a while. "True. I don't hold much hope for the situation, but it would be best to salvage what you can (if anything.)"

They hung up.

Earlier that same morning Ranma called the Spell Book to ask if she could get her first lesson on the clothing spell in the morning. Although Ms. Watanabe grumbled about the timing, she was willing.

Ranma went with two girl outfits and one spare outfit of male clothing in her stuff space. She reasoned that before she could combine a sex change with a clothing change she should practice just swapping outfits. She was wearing one of her boy outfits on the chance she didn't master the technique right away.

Noriko went along. When they arrived at The Spell Book, the store owner looked over the pretty blonde girl. "Happi is that really you?"

The girl's eyes went wide. "Aomori, is that you?"

In unison they both said, "You look so different."

The blonde laughed and said, "Please call me Noriko now. For all intents and purposes, Happosai is dead."

The other woman nodded. "The same can be said for Aomori. You should call me Atchica now."

The blonde chuckled and said, "Since you look older than I do now, you can call me 'Nori-Chan' if you like."

Ms. Watanabe smiled. "As you wish, _Nori-Chan_. When Ranma told me about her traveling companion I thought it had to be you. I'll have to confess, this," she waved her hand up and down in the new girl's direction, "seems a little extreme."

Noriko smiled back. "Actually this is what I've been trying to achieve all along."

The older sorceress took a step back. "What, really?"

The young woman looked like she was enjoying dropping bombshells on her old friend. "You see, I was born female and changed to male by a spell when I was a baby. I've been trying to get back to being female for 290 some years."

The sorceress stepped forward and gave Noriko a light slap to the back of her head. "You know you might have achieved that goal sooner if you had asked for help."

A look of shock came to the blonde woman's face. "Are you saying you knew a way to break the curse that was on me?"

"Well, no," the sorceress admitted. "But if you had asked, I could have worked on it. I bet I could have found something."

Noriko shook her head. "It's more complicated than you think. If you had just broken the curse and the spell, I'd have turned into a very old, and very quickly dead, woman. It had to be something like Nyaniichuan that would make me young as well as female."

With a shrug Ms. Watanabe said, "Well, what's done is done. You've finally did what you were trying to do."

Ranma had to give her input. "She almost didn't. In her old body he wasn't able to absorb ki anymore. I was able to transfer some of mine but his body was resisting it. In another week that resistance would have gotten so strong that there would have been nothing I could do to keep him alive."

The blonde stepped over to the redhead and took her hands. She looked into the shorter girl's eyes and told her, "I know. I don't know if I will ever be able to adequately thank you for saving my life. It is my hope that by helping you achieve your goals, I may at least partially repay you." She leaned over and kissed the younger girl on the forehead.

The shorter girl blushed. Part of her wanted to shout "What did you do that for?" Even in her embarrassment, though she found that she liked the emotions the kiss had evoked. After a moment she said, "That's Ok. You know, 'A martial artist must protect the weak' and all that."

Noriko wasn't fooled. She saw the look in Ranma's eyes. She didn't let anything show on her face but inside she was jumping up and down, shouting, "_Yes! I have a chance_!"

"Ahem!" The two girls stepped apart and looked over at Ms. Watanabe.

The sorceress said, "Sorry to intrude on your moment, but we do have a lesson that Ranma needs to take. Before we go back to the workshop I want to show you something in my office."

As they followed her, the older woman explained, "Ranma, that room you described where you have the switch to change between your male and female bodies is what we call a 'metaphor' in the magic trade. In truth it is something that you created in your own mind to make your changing easier. The fact that you have the control for the transformation and the timer for your curse is why I called it your control room."

She opened a door and ushered them in. The room was a trifle small and normally there wouldn't have been any place for guests to sit but the sorceress had brought in a couple of stools. On the desk there was a fairly up-to-date computer. She pointed to the screen and said, "What I have on here right now is a fantasy game. I don't know how well acquainted you are with computer games, but in this type of game the character that represents you is capable of carrying more than a real human being can lift."

She pointed to an item on the screen. "In the game it is simply called the inventory but you could compare it to your 'stuff space.' The character can use the inventory to carry things like weapons, armor, food, magic items and other things. What I'm suggesting is that you play around with this for a little while to sort of get a feel for it. When you have done that you should be able to put something similar in your metaphor of a control room. I think that would let you know exactly what you have in your stuff space and greatly help with the use of the clothing swap spell."

Ranma began moving the mouse pointer around the screen. At some points she stopped and asked questions before clicking anything. Ms. Watanabe pointed out, "In your metaphor you could touch the screen instead of using the mouse or just will it. I think it would be faster if you just will it."

As Ranma was playing around with the game on the computer, Noriko was watching intently. Considering what she already knew of magic, there was a chance she could use the clothing swap spell herself.

After playing with the game for a while, Ranma thought she had a good feel for it. She nodded then closed her eyes and brought up the mental image of the control room. Then she exerted her mental control so that the pedestal with the switch was transformed into a desk. The switch remained but now it was mounted on the desktop next to a computer monitor screen. The statues were reduced down to scale models and mounted just behind the switch. Then she exerted her will on the computer's monitor screen and brought up an inventory of the contents of her stuff space.

She allowed herself to feel a sense of satisfaction when it worked. She saw her clothes, her notebook, a pen and some other stuff displayed just like it was in the computer game. Maybe she should have brought along some of the books she had, but had left them in the hotel room. For the moment this was all she had. She still didn't know what to do with it. She did note that she could move things around the screen in her mind by using her will. She could arrange the individual clothing items into outfits or do a mix and match.

When she opened her eyes she said, "Ok, I've got the inventory working on the contents of my stuff space. I've even noticed a couple things I didn't remember having there."

"That's good," encouraged the sorceress. "From now on, by using this method, you should always be aware of every item in your stuff space and be able to access it instantly. For the moment that is all you have but you did that very quickly. I begin to think that the spell I used to give you control of your transformations also awakened your own magic."

Awakened her magic? That sounded good. She remembered the feeling she had during the casting of the spell to change the curse trigger. There wasn't just the sight of the lights, there were feelings too. She tried to tune into those feeling the same way she did with her ki senses. Yes! There was definitely something there.

Ms. Watanabe was watching with her magic senses. She said, "I see you've started to feel the mana, the magical energy that is all around us. It is stronger in some things than others but you can draw on it from the general environment. Everyone draws a minimal amount all the time without being aware of it. The designs I draw on the floor and the chanting are focusing devices. They allow the mana to be formed into the proper shapes and into the energy types that will be most effective to accomplish your purpose. Your will is the primary tool to accomplish these things."

The sorceress continued, "Before you try doing that, lets go to the workshop where we can all sit in comfortable chairs." At that urging they got up and left the office, they walked down the hall to a door that the older woman unlocked with her key. Shortly they were seated at the worktable and settled comfortably.

When she felt ready, Ranma closed her eyes and tried to focus her will on drawing in the energy. When she did that there was a sense of an indefinable something flowing into her body. The sorceress said, "Yes, you're doing it. Don't draw too fast or you could injure yourself."

After a moment the older woman said, "Good, you have enough. Concentrate on the mana being a shade of light blue with a feeling of silky smoothness." A moment later she told the redhead, "Now will the mana to form a coating on your skin all over."

She watched with a critical eye. After a moment she said, "Good! Now you need to look into your inventory and select an outfit. Charge it and the clothes you are wearing with more of the mana then give the command. You choose the word to use."

In the redhead's mind she selected an outfit, a light blue Chinese pantsuit, complete with shoes and undergarments. In the metaphor of the control room the selected outfit was highlighted on the screen as well as the current outfit she was wearing. When she felt that the items were properly charged, she mentally thrust the word "switch" at the screen.

There was a sensation like that of a wind which seemed to blow on her from all directions at the same time. It was impossible to describe to someone who had not experienced it before. When she opened her eyes she looked down and found herself dressed in the pale blue pantsuit. Underneath she was wearing panties and a bra. She took a deep breath because she felt like she had expended a fair amount of energy on the switch.

"Amazing!" Ms. Watanabe was really impressed. "Child... Ranma, you are a magical prodigy. I've never seen anyone get it right on the first try before."

Ranma was still trying to get used to the idea she had magically swapped out her clothing for the outfit in stuff space. She did register what was said and asked, "Prodigy means I'm really smart, right?"

The graying shopkeeper nodded. "That's right dear, _very_smart. Tell me, do you learn martial arts techniques quickly?"

The redhead nodded. "Yeah. Mostly I can learn a technique just by seeing it once or twice. If I don't get it perfect the first time I try it, I'll adjust and get it right on the second try. By the fourth time I do it, I can usually improve the technique or create variations."

"I see," the sorceress said.

Ranma elaborated, "There's this guy I know named Ryoga. He was taught how to throw a ki blast using ki based on depression. It's called Shi Shi Hokodan. It's a pretty powerful attack. After seeing it, I figured out how to do it myself. The problem was that I couldn't make a strong attack of it because I wasn't depressed enough."

"What did you do?"

She shrugged. "I created a variation that used ki based on confidence. I have a lot of confidence so my attack was even stronger than Ryoga's depression-based one. I called my version Moku Takabisha."

She frowned a moment. "Since then I've found out that using ki based on emotions can be risky. When you use it, the emotion is reinforced. If Ryoga ends up using his depression attack too much he could get so depressed that he might kill himself. With my attack I could get overconfident, underestimate opponents and make mistakes. I've since learned to use a version of my attack that uses pure ki with no emotional base. It's harder to learn, but worth it."

Ms. Watanabe nodded with a smile. "That explains it. If you were such a quick study in just one area such as martial arts it could have been an idiot-savant kind of talent."

"Hey!" Ranma protested being called an idiot-anything.

The sorceress continued. "Because you have shown yourself capable of learning quickly in more than one area, that more likely means you are a genuine genius. How are you at school?"

The redhead replied, "Well, before I used to get bored in class all the time and fell asleep. Since the wedding didn't work I've been paying attention and doing much better."

The older woman gave the young one an appraising look. "By 'much better' do you mean soaking up knowledge like a sponge? Learning new concepts in subjects like math and science as if you already knew them and were just being reminded when the subject comes up in class?"

A quizzical look on her face, Ranma considered that. "I guess so."

The sorceress smiled. "I think you will do well as a white mage and as a doctor. I see a lot of potential."

Her tone turned more businesslike. "Well, you've learned the technique. As in most things the first time is the hardest. What you will need to do now is to practice it – a lot. Right now the technique takes more effort than if you just got the alternate clothing out of stuff space and changed clothes the old fashioned way. After you have done it enough times you won't need any great concentration to do it. In fact the time will come that this will be the easier way for you to change clothes."

Easier? Ranma felt skeptical about that. She may have learned the technique easily, but the effort required to execute it was considerable. It would have been easier and quicker to pull the clothes out of stuff space and use chestnut fist speed to take off the old clothes and put on the new set. She kept that opinion to herself. Instead she resolved to practice when she had free time. Maybe it worked on the same principle as strengthening a muscle.

She closed her eyes and used the technique to change back to her male clothing. After doing that she changed to male form. After adjusting the clothing to his taller form the boy said, "That was interesting. I think I'm going to need a lot of practice if I'm going to get to where I can do the clothing change at the same time as the sex change."

Ms. Watanabe nodded. "Keep working at it. Even though you learned this technique in one lesson, I'd still like you to keep coming back. There are some other useful techniques I'd like to teach you along with general magic practice. You definitely have the aptitude."

She paused in thought. "I'm going to put together a selection of books on magic that will give you a good grounding in the subject. They should teach you what you need so you can do magic without blowing yourself up."

"Blowing myself up?" That didn't sound too good. True, it would put a rather permanent end to all of her problems with fiancées and such, but it wasn't exactly a desirable solution.

The sorceress nodded with a grin. "Now that you know how to draw mana and do some limited manipulation, you need to be careful. You may feel the urge to experiment, but you should fight that urge. Magic is something that you can do a lot of harm either to yourself or to people around you if you don't know what you're doing."

When Ranma looked unconvinced she explained, "If it had taken you a month to learn the clothing swap I wouldn't worry. Since you learned the technique in one session it shows you have the power and talent to do magic now. With the level of power and talent you display it is urgent that you learn the basic disciplines as soon as possible."

She paused as a thought occurred to her. She asked, "You know how you like to improve or modify martial arts techniques?"

"Yeah."

"Don't try that with magic!" She warned, "When you know more about it, you can experiment. With martial arts you know the 'rules,' for lack of a better term. You know the kinds of moves that can work and you know what your body is capable of. You should also have an idea of what your opponent can take. At this time you lack that kind of knowledge of magic and it could lead to explosive consequences if you are not careful."

She continued, "For now stick to the technique as you just learned it, no changes or deviations. Until you know what things are dangerous, until you know what _not _to do, you can't play around. Playing around with the clothing swap could destroy the clothes instead of exchange them or it could kill you."

"I get the point." The pigtailed boy was getting annoyed. It was true he could be reckless at times, but he could be cautious when the situation called for it. "This is like trying to drive a car when all you know how to do is start the engine and put gas in it, right? (That's pretty much all I know about driving.)"

The sorceress sat back in her chair with her eyes wide. "That's actually not a bad comparison. With a car you could figure out some things, but if you try to drive without learning how, you end up crashing and either hurting or killing yourself and maybe others as well. For this comparison you should substitute a truck loaded with dangerous cargo, something that might blow up if you make a mistake."

"Right," Ranma confirmed. "For now limit my magic just to what I already learned. No experiments."

"Good." The older woman said, "Plan on coming here tomorrow, preferably in the evening. Plan on a one hour session."

Ranma turned to Noriko and said, "It's getting close to lunch time. Did you want to go to the Nekohanten and eat there before we have our talk with them or get something before we go there?"

Noriko thought about it for a moment. "While they do make excellent ramen, I think we should eat elsewhere. It would help to avoid any hostilities during our meal. Even the chance of getting the food for free doesn't make up for the attitude of the staff."

The pigtailed boy nodded. "Yeah, you've got a point." Even if Shampoo was likely to give them food for free and extra portions as well, eating elsewhere would make it easier to avoid getting glomped. Hopefully it would also help him avoid getting chains, knives and other pointy metal objects thrown at him by Mousse.

It was for that reason that they went to a teriyaki place a few blocks from the bookstore. The food was good but not exceptional. A plus was the fact that it was reasonably priced and plentiful.

Author's Note: Well, Ranma has learned how to magically change clothing, but needs to practice. The Amazons have been informed of how they were fooled. Ranma and Noriko are at least thinking about how to deal with Kuno. In the next chapter they will talk to Kho Lon and try to settle the matter with Shan Pu. Stay tuned.

Thanks to UNSpacy000 for help in beta reading this chapter.


	16. Chap 16 Working It Out with the Amazons

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 15

Working it Out With the Amazons

When the duo arrived in the neighborhood where the Nekohanten was located they stopped on a roof across the street to size up the situation. It was nearing the end of the lunch rush but there were still a few new customers entering as well as others leaving. They wanted to wait until the stream of new customers going in slowed down to a trickle or stopped. They settled down to wait.

Inside the restaurant Cologne's ki senses were a little muddled by the large number of customers, but not enough that she couldn't sense the arrival of two powerful ki signatures on the roof across the street. She hopped over to look out a window. She couldn't see the two people with her eyes, but her ki senses told her they were behind an air conditioning unit, where they had probably sat down.

Even if she couldn't see them with her eyes, she could tell a lot from her ki senses. One of the signatures had to be Son-in-Law. From what she could tell he had grown stronger since the last time she had sensed him. Was that a trace of magic in his aura? At first she dismissed it as the curse, but quickly changed her opinion. It was something more than just a Jusenkyo curse. Was it possible that the boy had magic talent that he'd never shown before?

The other ki signature was harder to identify. The strength was easily equal to that of the old thief, but this one seemed completely female. Still if the old man was a girl now, that could be what her ki signature would look like. The fact that she was with the boy was really all she had to use as confirmation of who she suspected her to be.

If they were sitting and leaning against an air conditioning unit it seemed unlikely they were spying. It was more probable they were just waiting until the lunch rush was over. "_So considerate_." She went back to work.

It was about a half hour later when the traffic of people entering the front door of the restaurant stopped. Ranma and Noriko hid their belongings on the roof where they were. They had earlier found what looked like a small equipment shed. It wasn't locked and none of the things inside it looked like they would be worth stealing.

The two travelers leapt down to the sidewalk and walked the rest of the way to the door of the Nekohanten. Ranma waited outside while Noriko went in according to the plan they had worked out while eating at the teriyaki restaurant.

The former man was greeted by the sound of thumping as Cologne pogoed up on her cane. She studied the woman standing there. When Soap had said Happosai's new girl form was pretty, she had understated things. This girl was beautiful. But then Soap had not met the new girl face-to-face, she had been relaying the description given her by Lo Shen. In addition to the new woman's physical beauty she already seemed to have mastered the art of a feminine stance and movement, although that was overlaid by the power and grace of a trained martial artist.

Deciding to act as if she didn't recognize the girl, the Elder said, "Welcome to the Nekohanten. We have tables available. How many are there in your party?"

Noriko smirked and said, "Hello Kho Lon. I'm pretty sure you've already guessed who I am. There will be a total of two in my party. However we came to talk, not for food."

The old woman looked the girl up and down in a more obvious manner. "So Happi, this is what you wanted the cursed water for. I must confess, in all the time I've known you, I would never expected you to do this. It just seems so… out of character."

The blonde girl nodded with a grin. "It does, doesn't it? I assume you've heard either directly from Lo Shen or indirectly from your village after Lo Shen called them. I now go by the name Tendo Noriko. I didn't think Happosai really fit the new me."

The Amazon Elder gave an amused snort. "That much is certainly true. And will Son-in-Law be joining us, or have you come to act as his representative?" 

Noriko glanced at the door and said, "He plans to join us. However, we want to keep this cordial but not overly demonstrative. Ranma would appreciate it if you would ask Shan Pu to refrain from her usual, shall I say… enthusiastic displays of affection. He's afraid that if he just walked in he'd have to peel her off and then have to deal with Mousse throwing assorted pieces of sharp metal."

The elder chuckled as she said, "Such spoilsport you are. The children always put on such an entertaining display. I guess I can forgo my usual fun for this once."

She turned and called out, "Shan Pu, Mou Tsu, come here."

The two named individuals came forward. Cologne told them, "This woman is Tendo Noriko. You will treat her as a guest." The tone she used implied that "guest" meant more than just "customer."

Shampoo frowned. "Tendo? Related to violent pervert girl?"

Noriko shook her head. "Not really. It was a name I chose for myself."

The purpled haired girl looked confused. "Does Shampoo know blonde girl?"

The blonde laughed at that. "Yes, you know me. With your way of attaching descriptive nicknames to people, I suppose you'd call me 'old pervert.'"

The purple haired girl's eyes looked like they were trying to bulge out of her face. The nearly blind master of Hidden Weapons dropped his glasses in front of his eyes. He might not see very well but that voice definitely didn't sound like it came from a 300+ year old man.

"Aiyah! You is Hap… Happosai?" Shampoo wasn't quite able to deal with this yet.

The blonde nodded. "I guess your great grandmother hasn't told you about me yet. It would be more correct to say I _was_ Happosai. I don't want to use that name any more."

Shaking her head to clear it, Shampoo finally was able to summon enough brainpower to ask, "This what you want curse water for?"

Noriko struck a pose and grinned. "Yes. I rather like the results."

Still boggled, the Amazon girl said, "Old man now pretty girl?"

The blonde bowed her head and said, "Why thank you, Shan Pu." She let out a girlish giggle and struck a pose. Shan Pu's eyes looked close to popping out of her head.

Then Noriko's manner sobered. "I was dying and this was the only way to save my life. If you're interested I can give you the whole story later. It's a rather long one and we have other business to conduct today. Ranma wants to take part in this conversation…"

Before Noriko could say more, Shampoo exclaimed, "Airen back! Where he at? When can Shampoo see him?" She was nearly jumping up and down in her excitement.

Cologne shouted, "Shan Pu be still!" Most of the few remaining patrons turned from their meals to look at the disturbance.

"But great Grandmother…"

Whatever Shampoo might have been planning to say was cut off by a rap to her head by the Elder's cane.

The girl rubbed her scalp and gave a reproachful look to the old woman. "What great Grandmother do that for?"

"Calm down," the Matriarch instructed. "Miss Noriko has told me that Ranma wants to talk, but only if you stay calm and don't jump on him and grab him."

The normally bubbly girl protested, "But Shampoo only want show how much she love Airen."

The elder rolled her eyes. "I'm sure you do, but Son-in-Law seems to find it distracting. He and this woman want to have a quiet conversation about serious subjects. Don't glomp him."

Looking chastened, "Yes, great Grandmother. Shampoo won't glomp."

The tiny woman delivered a rap to Mousse's head. "As for you Mr. Part-Time, while Son-in-Law is here you will _not_ attack him. Is that understood?"

He glared at her but answered, "Understood." Under his breath he muttered, "Old mummy."

That earned him another rap on the head, while Cologne said, "I heard that."

He muttered some more in a voice that was too quiet for the old woman to hear. She nodded in evident satisfaction and hopped to the window next to the door. Pulling the curtain aside she turned the "Open" sign so the "Closed" side was showing. She rapped on the window to get the attention of Ranma who was standing there. When she saw him looking at her, she gestured for him to come inside.

Ranma pushed open the door and tentatively poked his head in. He looked around and said, "Hello Old… I mean Elder Kho Lon, Shan Pu, Mou Tsu."

The Amazons were all feeling a little bit of shock at being addressed by their correct names. Cologne said, "Son-in-Law." Mousse said, "Saotome." Shampoo was fidgeting but stayed in place. She said, "Nihao, Airen."

When no glomps or chains appeared to be forthcoming, Ranma came in the door fully. Cologne turned the lock on the door and said, "Let's go sit in one of the booths. Mousse, you tend to the remaining customers and let them out when they're ready to leave."

They moved to the booth and sat with Shampoo and Cologne on one side, Ranma and Noriko on the other. When they were settled Cologne asked, "Why did you want this meeting?"

Ranma and Noriko exchanged a glance. The blonde then turned to the Amazons and said, "As you have no doubt heard, we were recently in China near to your charming village. We spent some time enjoying the hospitality of your sister tribe while staying at the home of Elder Lo Shen."

Cologne resisted the urge to scowl. She couldn't completely keep the edge out of her voice as she said, "Yes, I've been informed of that."

Ranma spoke up next. "I found Lo Shen to be a really nice lady and so was her granddaughter, Po Shen. We had fun while we were there. I learned some cool martial arts techniques."

The elder couldn't hide her anger now. "They taught you secret Amazon techniques?"

Ranma shrugged. "I honestly don't know. The lady who trains their police officers, a woman who calls herself the Brick, didn't say if the techniques were secret or not." After a moment's thought he asked, "Weren't some of the techniques you taught me supposed to be secret?"

He quickly dismissed that from his mind before continuing, "Anyway, while we were there I figured that the time had come to get the whole business between me and your tribe straightened out. Noriko is along because she speaks better than me and she pointed out that sometimes I don't say what needs to be said because I don't want to hurt people's feelings."

Noriko bowed her head a moment in acknowledgement. "First I want to establish some facts that I don't think any of you will want to argue with. Primary among those facts is that Ranma is a world-class martial artist, capable of defeating both Herb of the Musk and Saffron of the Phoenix. There are likely older masters who are better, but this boy would definitely qualify as one of the best. Are we agreed so far?"

Everybody nodded. The blonde girl said, "Now about Ranma's character. He can be naïve, occasionally arrogant and has been guilty of talking without thinking. This is sometimes called 'foot in mouth.' He also has a bit of a temper but it takes a lot to get him angry. Still with me?"

Ranma wasn't exactly comfortable with this but Noriko had warned him she was going to be saying those things so he just nodded.

"On the positive side," continued the blonde. "Ranma is brave, loyal to his friends and honorable to a fault. He is kind hearted. Does anyone wish to dispute this?"

The two Amazons at the table shook their heads.

"Good," said Noriko. "It is always good to have at least some points on which all parties can agree before we get to the things there are likely to be an argument about. Also not in dispute is the fact that you," she pointed to the women on the other side of the table, "have been trying to get Ranma to go back to your village as Shan Pu's husband."

Cologne and Shampoo looked at each other. The way the girl had worded it, they had to agree. They both nodded.

The girl said, "Also true is the fact that Ranma doesn't want to go."

Shampoo protested, "But Airen love Shampoo."

Noriko held up her hand to cut off the threatened torrent of words. "Does he? That hasn't been established yet. And that's not what I was talking about. I just said that Ranma doesn't want to go to your village. I didn't say anything about his reasons."

Shampoo looked like she wanted to argue the point but Cologne put her hand on the girl's arm and said, "She's right. The boy has made it clear enough he doesn't want to go. After all of this time I don't think he's just playing hard-to-get."

The purple haired girl looked sullen but even she couldn't deny the facts. Still she held hope that she might win her husband over and change his mind. She said, "Shampoo agree."

The former man nodded. "Now to points in dispute. Kho Lon and Shan Pu say that they have a valid claim, based on Amazon law, that Ranma is Shan Pu's husband. Ranma disagrees and says the claim is not valid."

Again Shampoo looked like she wanted to argue, but Cologne put her hand on the girl's arm. All that Noriko had stated just outlined the positions of the parties involved without making any conclusions.

"Now to Shan Pu's claim," said the blonde. "While in female form, Ranma defeated Shan Pu in battle during a once-yearly tournament. Possibly Shan Pu might have made a better showing if she hadn't been tired from fighting several battles in the course of that tournament, I'm not going to argue that point. The established fact is that Ranma won."

She waited for a moment and there was no argument. "The next point is that the defeated warrior gave the winner the Kiss of Death as is supposed to happen when an Amazon warrior is defeated by an Outsider girl. Or at least that is what your laws say."

Next she said, "I know your laws. I know what is says to do if the winner is actually a Jusenkyo cursed man who is in cursed form. Your laws state that the defeated warrior is supposed to give the Kiss of Marriage. Shan Pu gave the wrong Kiss. I suppose she might be forgiven that, because she didn't know Ranma was a cursed male, that's not my decision to make."

She frowned. "There is a point that I'm unsure of myself. This was not just a random challenge. This happened at a tournament and the fight was specifically stated to be over the food on the Champion's table. I'm not as knowledgeable about this as the Book of Laws. I seem to remember seeing the tournament rules state that Outsiders may fight in the tournament by invitation. Those invited Outsiders are exempt from Kisses of Death or Marriage. Kho Lon, do you remember that rule?"

The Elder sat back with her eyes wide (or at least wider than usual.) "I haven't looked at the tournament rules in a long time. Those are the kinds of things that nobody ever looks at unless there is a dispute. I didn't bring a copy of those rules with me. I didn't expect to need them. I'll have to call back to the village and ask them to read them to me. In this I'm like you, I have a vague memory that it may have said such a thing, but I'm not sure."

Noriko nodded. "Even if there is such a rule there could still be some argument as to whether or not the challenge over the food counts as an invitation. I just bring it up to show that Shan Pu's Kiss of Death has a shaky legality and even a Kiss of Marriage could be disputed on that basis."

She continued, "The next event in this came when Shampoo confronted Ranma in his male form for the first time at the Tendo home. I was still sealed in a cave at the time so I wasn't there to witness the events, but they have been described to me. As I understand the issue, Shan Pu claims that by breaking off the ball on her bonborri so that it flew up in the air and knocked her out that Ranma defeated her, earning him a Kiss of Marriage."

Shampoo nodded vigorously.

"Ranma insists that it was an accident," The blonde went on. "He wasn't attacking the intruder in his home; he was simply trying to disarm her so she couldn't harm the other people in the home."

"So far I have just stated the opposing views without arguing in favor of either," stated Noriko. "Now we come to something that I believe is relevant. Your book of law states that if an Outsider male defeats one of your warriors she must give him the Kiss of Marriage and marry him. Indeed, Shan Pu has been speaking about it as if the Kiss itself was enough to qualify as a marriage ceremony. As I remember the law, there has to be a formal ceremony before they can be called husband and wife."

She continued, "Now we come to what I think is a valid point but I'm sure there would need to be some debate in your Council. Shan Pu is using the term Outsider to mean 'anyone outside the Joketsuzoku tribe.' I honestly believe that Ranma was in his own home, in his own city and country of residence and Shan Pu was the Outsider in this situation. If we accept that as true then the Kiss of Marriage is not valid by your own laws. I'm not stating that as an absolute, just to point out that the Kiss of Marriage is also of shaky legality."

"Great Grandmother can't listen to this. Ranma defeated Shampoo. He is Airen."

The old woman just gave the girl a look that silenced her. After a moment she said, "I agreed to listen. She does have a right to be heard."

Noriko nodded. "Those are not offered as arguments. However if you accept my later arguments those may be a way for Shan Pu to return to your village with her honor intact."

Cologne raised an eyebrow enquiringly. "Explain that."

The blonde woman complied. "Shan Pu received her Jusenkyo curse as punishment for returning to the village without having killed Ranma or bringing him back as her husband, correct?" At the Elder's nod, she went on, "If she were to return now I'm guessing she would face an even harsher punishment, such as having her curse locked."

The elder nodded again. Noriko said, "Those two facts might allow you to argue with the council that Shan Pu only made a mistake. She didn't fail to bring back her husband because he was never hers to bring."

The Matriarch said, "I will keep that in mind."

"Very well," said Noriko. "Let's consider the options if you keep on the way you have been going. What might happen if you were to use violence to get Ranma back to the village such as knocking him out, or using drugs or magic? When Ranma recovered he would be upset, likely angry. I've heard him referred to as the God Slayer. Do you really want an angry god killer in your village?"

Kho Lon frowned at the question but didn't speak. It was a question she had asked herself before and one that had been debated in the Council.

"Another possibility would be erasing his memory, then taking him back to the village," Noriko said. "Now we know that the memory erasure is not always 100 percent effective. I wasn't there to see it, but I heard that Ranma was able to restore Akane's memory of him just by talking to her. If Ranma were to regain his memories after such an attempt you are again faced with an angry God Killer."

Cologne nodded. She had already considered these possibilities and discussed them with the Council. "You have more?"

The blonde girl nodded. "Ranma wouldn't respond well to having his friends or family threatened, you know that. I would also point out something else. If you did something that caused Ranma to go into such a rage that he did destroy your village and killed all of the people in it, how do you think he would react when he calmed down?"

There was silence in contemplation of that. "I'll tell you," said Noriko. "Because he is an honorable man and kind hearted, I believe that if Ranma found that, in a fit of rage, he killed that many people, he would soon after take his own life."

His expression grim, Ranma said, "It's true, I would."

Cologne just nodded grimly. She believed it.

Noriko sighed deeply. "Such an outcome would be the worst kind of tragedy. Your people would be dead and so would Ranma. Nobody would gain from those deaths. It wouldn't even be in defense of anyone."

"Then we come to the idea that Ranma might willingly marry Shan Pu." Noriko looked at the boy in the seat beside her. "What are your feelings about that?"

For a few moments Ranma looked down at the tabletop as if studying the grain of the wood. Finally he firmed his resolve and looked Shampoo in the eye. "Shan Pu, I don't love you. To be honest you scare me."

The purple haired girl reeled back as if struck. Ranma wasn't going to back down this time. "For three weeks you chased me and tried to kill me. If I weren't as good a martial artist as I am, you would have succeeded and I'd be dead now. After the business with the broken bonborri you said you loved me. Yet, when I got splashed, you were trying to kill me again. Even if you didn't know that 'boy type' Ranma and 'girl type' were the same person, I can't love someone who can go from 'I love you' to 'I'll kill you' with just a splash of water."

He sighed deeply. "Then there is the fact that you don't treat me like a person. You say you love me, but what kind of love? Is it the love of a woman for her husband? The way you treat me it is more like it is the same kind of love for your favorite bonborri. You treat me like a thing, a prize to be won, a possession. You may respect my martial arts skills, but you don't respect the person using them. I can't live like that."

Now being relentless, he continued, "I guess it's possible you could try to change. If you said you were going to start treating me better there is the issue of trust. You have used all kinds of dirty tricks to try and get me to go to your village. How can I trust you after that? I've heard that a marriage can't survive without trust. I don't know how I could ever trust you. I don't think I could believe you if you said you were changed. I don't want to marry you."

The Amazon warrior looked like she was ready to cry.

Noriko took it up again. "For a moment let us ignore what Ranma just said and ask what would happen if Ranma did marry Shan Pu and moved to the village. There are two possible way things could go - Ranma gets treated the same as all the other men in the village or he gets treated better because of who he is and what his skills are."

She shook her head. "If he were treated the same he would become dissatisfied and want to leave. If he were treated better he would feel guilty about being treated differently than the men around him. In both situations that honor and kind hearted nature of his would play a part. He might feel tempted to improve the lot of the men in the village. Guess how that would turn out."

The blonde continued on, "You might ask what would happen if they married and lived in Japan? That's where we come to all of the objections that Ranma stated. I doubt if such a marriage would last."

Noriko glanced over at Ranma then back to the women on the other side of the table. "I know this is something you would think of, Cologne. You might ask that Ranma be the father of a child with Shan Pu and maybe some other Amazon girls so that you would at least still get the benefit of his genetics to strengthen your people."

She turned again to the boy beside her. "What do you think of that idea, Ranma?"

He scowled. "I would never agree to it. You would be asking me to abandon my children by letting your women raise them. My honor wouldn't allow me to do that."

The blonde made an expressive gesture with her hands as if to say, "There you go." She now said, "There is one other thing. I know the people of your tribe hold healers in high regard." She patted Ranma on the shoulder and instructed, "Tell her."

Ranma began, "When we were in Joketsuzoku territory we were stopped by one of your patrols, I told warrior Ei Linah about how I was keeping Happosai alive by giving him my ki. She called me 'honored healer.' I understand why she would think that from what I said, but I liked it."

He continued, "Later, when we asked what we could do to repay Elder Lo Shen's hospitality, she had me work in the village medical clinic. I guess she saw something in my eyes when I was telling her about what Ei Linah called me. I liked helping people that way and I learned a lot. Now I've decided that I want to be a doctor. I'll keep martial arts as a hobby, but I'm going to start studying to be a doctor as soon as I can."

Noriko now asked, "What do you say to that, Kho Lon?"

The elder's shoulders slumped a bit and she sighed. "I wanted to hear all of your arguments, and I admit you have given some strong ones. As far as taking the boy by violence, drugs or magic, the Council has already discussed it. They have agreed that such tactics would no longer be permitted. They make some of the very same arguments against taking the God Slayer by force."

She glanced over at Shampoo. "It was the decision of the council to allow Shan Pu to try and use the techniques of persuasion, seduction and romance. In truth I didn't hold much hope of success from these techniques." She shook her head.

"Great Grandmother? What you say?" Shampoo was confused and frightened. She felt the happy life she envisioned with her Airen slipping away from her.

The old woman sighed. "I confess that when I first came to Japan to help Shan Pu pursue her prospective husband that we (both Shan Pu and I) rather badly mishandled things. Son-in… Ranma possesses a stubborn streak and resists being pushed. The harder the push, the more firmly he digs in his heels."

The Matriarch looked at Ranma and shook her head. "Perhaps if Shan Pu had approached openly in an honest attempt to win his heart instead of using the tactics she did, there may have been a chance. As it stands now, the young man distrusts us and deservedly so."

The white haired woman looked over at Noriko and said, "You present strong arguments, but in truth you have said little that has not already occurred to myself or other members of the Council. Tonight, after you leave I will call them to mention those 'face saving' suggestions of yours and to get them started on debating them."

Looking over at Ranma, the Elder said, "Your desire to be a doctor is something of a surprise. I thought you loved the Art."

Ranma frowned. "Think about it," he suggested. "I was taken from my home at the age of five and made to train by a man who was more sensei than father. He never showed any affection. The Art was all I knew, but nobody ever asked me if it was what I wanted. It's been such a big part of my life that I can't imagine giving it up completely. But that doesn't mean it has to be the only thing in my life now."

For the first time since the meeting began, Cologne smiled. "It would seem that you are growing up, Ranma."

"Great Grandmother, Shampoo love Ranma. Don't do this!" Shampoo begged.

The old woman shook her head. "In the battle for Ranma's heart, you have lost. Accept it and move on. You will find someone else."

"Not want someone else!" The girl insisted. "In battle for heart, who Shampoo loose to? Ranma want marry Violent Girl or Spatula Girl?"

Ranma looked slightly angry. "Even if it's no longer your concern, I'll tell you this, Ukyo is just a friend. She's never been more than a friend. As for Akane, she _is_ a violent girl. Like I don't trust you, she doesn't trust me. I did love her but don't anymore. And before you ask, I don't want to marry Kodachi either. Right now I don't want to marry anyone."

"No, Ranma is Airen. Must marry Shampoo!"

The boy shook his head. "You heard the arguments. Besides that I don't love you. I repeat I _don't_... _love_... _you_. Because you tried to kill me and tried to do stuff that would basically make me your slave, you scare me."

Now angry, the purple haired girl cried out, "Ranma _will_ marry Shampoo! You is Airen! We supposed to be together." The girl looked like she was going to climb from her seat to dive across the table.

Before she could get up, she suddenly slumped. Cologne shook her head sadly. "Shiatsu sleep spot," She explained. "I was expecting an outburst like that."

She turned and looked around the dining room of the restaurant. While they had been conversing the last of the customers had left. Mousse was sitting in the next booth, listening in. The elder commanded, "Mousse, carry Shan Pu up to her room and put her on her bed. Don't worry that you might miss something important, we're almost finished here."

The long haired boy adjusted his glasses to look at his beloved. He hoped she would get over this, especially now that Saotome was removing himself from the game. He picked her up and carried her toward the stairs.

Cologne turned back to the two visitors and said, "Tenacity can be an admirable trait if not carried to extremes. I fear that Shan Pu lacks restraint. I hope I don't have to take her back to the village in a pet carrier."

"I hope so too," Ranma said. "I may not want to marry her but that doesn't mean I want anything bad to happen to her."

"I understand," the Elder responded. "_There's that kind heart again_," she thought.

Cologne took a deep breath and held it for a moment before letting out a long sigh. "Before we conclude this meeting, there are a few other options I would like to explore."

On her guard, Noriko asked, "What 'options' do you have in mind?"

"The Council has authorized me to make certain offers," the old woman stated. "It is felt that if we cannot have Ranma bound to the tribe by marriage, we would still prefer to maintain a friendly relationship."

Noriko exchanged a look with Ranma. He shrugged. Turning back to Cologne, Noriko said, "We're listening."

"Because Ranma has the Nyaniichuan curse, he could be adopted into the tribe as an Amazon warrior," the elder offered.

"Would this 'adoption' require that Ranma move to the Joketsuzoku village?" asked the blonde.

Hedging a little, the white haired woman said, "While it is normally expected that one adopted into the tribe would live in the village, it could not be called a requirement."

The former man considered that for a moment. "'Expected' but not 'required'? You play games with words. What is the next of the options you have to offer?"

Cologne hadn't really expected for that one to be accepted. But leading off with the adoption offer would make the next one sound better. "Ranma could become an ally of the Joketsuzoku."

"Ally of the tribe?' Noriko thought about that. "What is involved in such an 'alliance'?"

"Ranma would not be required to move out of Japan," stated the Elder. "However, he would vow to come to the aid of the tribe if we needed him. This vow would not require him to participate in any war of aggression we might wage against the Musk or Phoenix."

Nodding, the blonde woman asked, "Are there any duties to this other than going to China to fight on the side of the Joketsuzoku against the other tribes?"

"Yes," Cologne answered. "He would have the duty to give aid to members of the tribe who might visit Japan. Such aid might include providing a place to sleep for a night or a meal or two. It would not mean he would have to play permanent host to such a visitor."

When Noriko looked at Ranma this time he looked uncertain. Nodding, Noriko turned back to Cologne. "That sounds like a better offer than the adoption, but Ranma will need time to think about it. It would help if you had some kind of document or copy of your laws that detailed all of the duties of an ally along with any rights or privileges that might be included."

"One thing you would like about it is that such allies are exempt from the Outsider laws," the tiny woman stated. "That would mean that you would never be subject to the Kiss of Death or Marriage. That exemption would also extend to whatever woman you might marry as well as any children from such a union."

When she saw that Ranma still looked unconvinced, Cologne added, "If you found yourself facing an opponent you were unable to defeat, you could call upon the tribe the same as we could call on you."

"Before you start on all of your usual bravado that you are the best, I would point out that no warrior is completely invincible," the elder proclaimed. She held up a hand to forestall an argument on this point. "Some foes might be too much for you because they are too numerous or they have magic or other powers that you cannot counter."

Wrapping up, the elder added, "I would also mention that the help you receive would not necessarily be limited to warriors who will fight by your side. The help you could call on would include Elders such as myself to advise you. You would have to admit that I am much more experienced than you, even if you might have power to match or surpass mine. In the supposed battle I speak of, the victory could come with a strategy suggested by myself or one of our other elders."

Ranma spoke up, "While that does sound good, I still need to take time to think about it. If I do agree to it, I would have to put a condition on it. Shampoo should not be punished any more for what she's done or failed to do."

"Very well," Cologne replied. In truth she had been expecting that condition and had been ready to offer it if needed. "I will get the information ready for you. You can come to pick it up as early as tomorrow or whenever is convenient for you."

The elder frowned as she met Noriko's eyes. "What I don't understand is what your interest is in this. In the past you have not exactly been well known for your generosity. What are you getting out of this?"

Noriko's looked over at Ranma with a smile. When she turned back to look at Cologne her manner was serious. "I'm not doing it out of generosity. I owe Ranma an enormous debt. I don't know if I can ever fully repay that debt."

Nodding sagely, the Elder said, "Of course… he saved your life."

"He did more than that!" The blonde woman said.

She looked down for a moment before saying, "When I was Happosai, I wasn't a nice person. I was depressed a lot because of my problem and to fight that depression I felt that I had to make everything a game. That included the way I got the female ki I needed to stay alive."

She looked sad. "I had convinced myself that I was just having harmless fun. After all, I wasn't hitting all of those women; I was just touching them. I didn't think stealing their undergarments would hurt them either. Ranma showed me the truth. He (well… she at the time) told me how much she hated being groped, how it made her feel. She told me what other girls felt about it."

She glanced over at Ranma and the smile was rueful this time. "I owe apologies to all of the women I groped. Unfortunately I never learned the names of most of those women. Even worse is the fact that many of them are dead. I've been groping women and stealing lingerie for a _very_ long time."

Letting out a sigh, Noriko explained, "I groped Ranma more than any other woman. I will do all I can to make it up to her... and him."

The blonde woman pursed her lips for a moment then went on. "I resolved to change my ways and be a better person. Because of the debt I owe Ranma, his happiness has become very important to me. To further that happiness, I will do everything I can to help him resolve his fiancée problems. I also intend to help him get through school and into medical school later."

Cologne looked back and forth between Noriko and Ranma. "_What is this_?" She thought. "_The looks, the smiles and now 'his happiness has become very important to me.' Holy Aphrodite, she's in love with him! She's in love with him and she hasn't told him_. _How could someone like Happosai fall in love with this boy_?"

The Elder couldn't help it; she leaned back and started laughing. "_When Noriko was listing the boy's character traits she didn't mention that he is a magnet for beautiful women. Even a woman who used to be a man is attracted to him. It would appear that the Saotome charm had struck again_."

Ranma looked confused. What Noriko had said about helping him get to medical school wasn't funny, was it? "Uh… Elder Kho Lon? What's so funny?"

The elder controlled herself with an effort. It was just too delicious. She said, "Sorry child. It's just that what Noriko said reminded me of something amusing. I'm afraid it's something of a private joke."

The boy still looked confused but shrugged. "If you say so."

The elder finally contained her hilarity. "Very well! This is something that has been coming for a while. You have just provided the necessary push to end the matter. It may take a week or two to finish wrapping up our affairs here. I'd appreciate hearing your decision on whether or not you wish to accept the offer to become an ally of the tribe before we leave."

She looked Ranma in the eyes. "Child, for some time I thought you were going to become part of my family. I confess that I have become fond of you. I'd like very much if you would stay in touch to let me know how your schooling in the medical arts and sciences progresses."

The pigtailed martial artist thought to himself, "_You sure have a strange way of showing that fondness_." Out loud he said, "Sure, I can write you letters. Just let me know your address. I'd tell you to send mail to me at the Tendo dojo, but I'm not sure how much longer that's gonna be my address."

"Oh?" The Elder raised an eyebrow.

He shrugged. "After I break up with Akane, they probably won't want me to live there anymore."

"Ah, good point," the Elder acknowledged. "Has your mother's house been repaired yet?"

With a sour expression he said, "Not enough to move into."

"Where will you go if the Tendos throw you out?"

Ranma shrugged again. "We have a hotel room rented through tonight if we need it. If I have to, I guess I could look for an apartment." As he said that he had a thought. He'd have to wait to ask Noriko about it after they left the restaurant.

The old woman got a sympathetic expression on her face. She said, "I would offer you the use of the spare room upstairs, but I doubt you would trust me enough to put yourself at my mercy."

"Don't worry about it," advised Ranma. "Like I said, we have it covered for tonight and I'm sure we can figure out something for tomorrow."

Cologne nodded. "Well, I think we're finished here for now. If there is anything I can do for you, feel free to contact me."

Noriko pulled something from stuff space and placed it on the table. She said, "This is the Nanban Mirror. Of the magical items I stole all those years ago, this is the only one I kept. I'm sure you will notice that it is broken and held together with tape. The dangerous thing about it is that it still works, but unreliably. It might take you to the past or to another world, but most likely not the one you wished for. If it did take you to the correct world you could end up on the other side of the planet from where you wanted to be."

The Elder picked up the Mirror and looked at it. "There are some in our tribe who may know of a magical means to repair this. What did you do with the other items you took from our treasure chamber?"

Noriko explained, "You must understand that the magical items I stole were things I had hoped would help me with my problem. I wanted things that could cure the curse that turned me into that gnome and hopefully return me to my birth gender. I traded off the items that didn't work for others that might."

Cologne shook her head sadly. "If you were looking for a way to change into a woman, you should have asked us. We would have helped."

The blonde challenged, "And would the price for that help have been becoming a member of the tribe? Would you have demanded that I become the mother of warriors to strengthen your people?"

The elder looked thoughtful. "You do have a point and the question is valid. We might have required that of you. Then again, I can't say for sure."

Noriko bowed her head forward and pulled a leather thong from around her neck. She pulled out the amulet that had been concealed under her blouse. She handed this to Cologne and said, "This is called the Amulet of Ortiz. It is designed as a magical defense and it was this that suppressed my curse so that Nyaniichuan water would work on me without killing me."

The Amazon Matriarch frowned. "Why are you giving this to me now?"

The young woman answered, "I honestly don't know where the items are that I traded off. I think it is unlikely that the people I traded them to would have kept them. However this is one of items I received in trade. I've gotten my use out of it and hoped that you would accept it as partial repayment for the things that I took."

The old woman looked at the amulet. After studying it for a while she said, "This isn't enough to settle the debt you owe us, but it is a good first step. Perhaps at some point in the future we can discuss what else you can do to help repay the debt."

The former man smiled a bit. "I haven't had time to go looking for them, but I have magical items stashed in locations all over the world. Now that my quest is complete and I'm back to being female, I can recover those and give them to your tribe. They aren't the same artifacts, but since you weren't using them anyway, maybe you'd be willing to accept substitutes."

Cologne nodded. "As I said, we can discuss that at some other time."

The young man stood and tugged on Noriko's sleeve. "We should get going. I don't know how long it will take to settle with the Tendos and my parents. If things don't work out, we want to be able to get back the hotel at a reasonable time."

The Elder got on her cane and hopped over to the door to unlock it. The two travelers bowed to her before stepping outside. Shortly they were on the roof of the building across the street where they recovered their belongings.

Author's Note: That should settle matters with the Amazons. Next up, Ranma and Noriko try to hash things out with the Tendos and Ranma's parents.

As usual, thanks to UNSpacy000 for help in beta reading this chapter.


	17. Chapter 17 Provisions of the Will

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 16A

The Provisions of the Will

As they stood on the roof across the street from the Nekohanten, Noriko glanced back toward the restaurant and asked, "You seemed in a bit of a hurry to get out of there. Was there a reason?"

Ranma nodded. "I thought of something on the subject of where to stay if the Tendo's throw me out. You were saying that you own a lot of land with a lot of buildings on them. Do those include any apartments?"

She looked surprised. She asked herself why she hadn't thought of that. "Lots of them. Quite a range, in fact. In the buildings I own there are apartments ranging from high level luxury apartments to the most basic studio apartments with little space. If we need a place to stay, it shouldn't be any trouble."

"Good," he affirmed. "That's one less problem on my mind." He leapt to the roof of the next closest building in the direction of the Tendo Dojo.

It was not long before they touched down on the walk between the gate and the front door of the Tendo home. Ranma dreaded this confrontation the most.

Carrying their belongings with them, they stepped through the door and Ranma called out, "We're home."

Kasumi came to genkan, wiping her hands on a towel. "Oh, hello Ranma. I wasn't expecting you back today. Nabiki told us you wouldn't be back until tomorrow."

"We got an earlier flight," Ranma explained.

The eldest Tendo daughter bowed and said, "This must be Noriko. You are every bit as beautiful as your picture. I'm happy you were able to accomplish your mission."

Noriko smiled and bowed her head in response. Nobody could make one feel welcome quite like Kasumi. It was partly because of this attitude that Happosai had never groped the eldest Tendo girl.

By this time the rest of the family was crowding around the door. Ranma noted the sour expression on Akane's face and wondered, "_What crawled up her butt and died_?'

In perfect Ice Queen fashion, Nabiki kept her face placid, but her tone betrayed some of her annoyance, "Your flight wasn't due in until tomorrow. What's the story, Saotome?"

Ranma shrugged and said, "The next village over from the Amazon home had an airstrip. We hitched a ride on a plane that was carrying a cargo of tea leaves all the way to Beijing. From there we were able to get an earlier flight to Tokyo. We've actually been in town since Friday."

Nodoka sounded a little hurt as she said, "You should have called when you got back."

Genma demanded, "What have you been doing since you got back, boy?"

Noriko spoke in an authoritative tone, "He's been with me. We had business to take care of and didn't need the two of you interfering. Soun, Genma, make no mistake, the package may be different, but I'm still your master."

Recognizing the tone the two older men bowed and said, "Sorry Master."

Kasumi said, "Ranma, Grand… I mean Noriko, dinner is almost ready. I'm sorry, but I didn't know you were coming so I didn't prepare enough."

Ranma shrugged and said, "That's Ok, Kasumi. We can scrounge something from what's in the refrigerator." He knew better than to look for leftovers. With a human food vacuum like Genma in the house, there was little likelihood of anything being left over after any meal.

They moved into the living room and sat down. Ranma looked over at his fiancé and said, "Akane I have something for you."

With an angry scowl, the girl with the black hair retorted, "Why would I want anything you'd have to give me?"

Ranma frowned. He asked in plaintive tones, "I've been gone for a month. I haven't even been here to do or say anything to insult or bother you. What can you possibly be mad at me for?"

"Yes, you've been gone, alone with that _person_." She stood up and pointed dramatically at Noriko. "The most perverted man in Japan now has a female body. Who knows what kinds of perverted things she's been doing to that body and what perverted things the two of you have been doing together."

"_Why does she always assume that kind of stuff about me_?" Ranma wondered.

Before he could say anything in his defense, Noriko stood up and demanded, "Akane sit down! I don't know why you imagine things like that, but I can tell you that while we were traveling together Ranma and I never did anything remotely sexual together. He was a perfect gentleman. As for what I do with my own body, perverted or otherwise, I don't see where it's your business or anyone else's. Just as whatever you do with your body is none of my business."

"So you don't deny doing hentai things with your body!" Her ki mallet formed in her hand.

Now angry Ranma said, "Akane, if you don't stop acting like this, I won't give you the autographs I got from the Sailor Senshi."

Mallet-Sama disappeared. Akane's head snapped around as she looked at Ranma, wide eyed. "The Sailor Senshi? You've met them?"

Ranma gave an amused snort. "Yeah, when I was in Juuban yesterday. I even fought monsters with the Inners. Three of the Outers got there just as a rain shower hit and when they saw me change they thought I was a monster and attacked me. Sailor Pluto stopped them."

The boy thought Akane's eyes would pop out of their sockets from her opening her eyes so wide. He pulled his notebook out of stuff space and tore the page from it. He handed the sheet to Akane.

In a whisper she read the page. "'To my biggest fan, Akane, signed Sailor Moon.' 'For love and justice – Sailor Mars,' 'You'd better treat that gorgeous hunk of a fiancé right, or someone will take him away from you – Sailor Jupiter." She fell silent with her lips mouthing the names as she read over the sheet. The autograph from Sailor Uranus was similar to Jupiter's but mentioned a "hot babe" instead of "hunk."

Ranma laughed, "It turns out that Sailor Jupiter is a major martial arts otaku. She's heard of me and said she was a fan."

Akane looked slightly astonished. "Sailor Jupiter is a fan… of yours?"

The boy nodded. "She wasn't the only one. Sailor Uranus was too."

The youngest Tendo was looking a little overwhelmed. A little uncertainly she asked, "Sailor Uranus?"

"Yeah, you know tall, short blonde hair, sort of butch looking," Ranma clarified. "A real tomboy. You'd probably get along great with her."

The dark haired girl nodded dumbly.

Ranma looked at her and commented, "I thought so when I saw her, but you look a little like Sailor Mercury. Her face and hair are a lot like yours. She's not as athletic as you, though."

"I do?" She recalled the pictures of Sailor Mercury and thought, "_Maybe I do_. _It's hard to know for sure because you can't really see her face_."

Thinking back on the meeting, the pigtailed martial artist shook his head. "When I looked at the pictures you have, I didn't think it was possible for women to have hair like Sailors Pluto or Neptune. Pluto's is dark green and Neptune's is light blue. I guess I shouldn't be surprised after seeing the colors on some of the Amazons. Saturn's hair is a darker purple than Shampoo's."

Akane was too dazed to respond to the mention of Shampoo's name. She stared at the piece of paper in her hand. Ranma had actually met her heroes. He was probably just bragging about fighting monsters with them, but to have actually _met_ them. Instead of anger, she felt jealousy.

At that moment Kasumi carried the first of the food to the dining table. Everybody took that as a cue to stop talking and go eat. They moved to the dining table.

Ranma and Noriko were served sandwiches that Kasumi had whipped up. Ranma smiled and thanked her. During the meal Akane chattered on and on about the Senshi and things she had heard about them.

When they adjourned back to the living room, Noriko stood up and went to the middle of the room. She bowed in Kasumi's direction and said, "Thank you Kasumi. I'm sorry we just dropped in on you without any notice. The sandwiches were excellent."

She looked around and said, "Now that we've all eaten, I hope everyone is in the mood to listen. There is a need to clear the air. Questions need to be asked and answers given. The first point is my identity. I was the man you knew as Happosai. When I changed, I didn't want to keep that name or any variation of it. Instead I took the name of my friend and mentor Noriko."

Nabiki frowned and asked, "Wasn't she also the witch who cast the spell and curse on you?"

The blonde nodded. "I forgave her for that. Soun, I hope you don't mind that the name I chose was Tendo Noriko. Like I said before, you people here are the closest thing I have to a family."

The martial artist with the mustache frowned and asked, "Are you going to ask me to adopt you as my daughter?" It was obvious from his expression and tone that he was dreading the answer. 

Noriko raised her eyebrows then fluttered her eyelashes. In a sweet, girlish tone she said, "Why Soun, that's a _wonderful_ idea." She paused then smiled and followed by saying, "But no, you don't have to do that if you don't want to. I would be honored to be your daughter, but would settle for being a cousin or your niece or something like that. Maybe I could be a distant cousin from a branch of the family you had previously forgotten about. Maybe we could say I'm from the same branch as 'Tendo Ranko'."

The long haired man looked relieved but a little disturbed by the suggestion that Noriko and Ranko were both cousins. Still he nodded and said, "That might work."

The young woman standing in the middle of the room asked, "Does anyone dispute the fact that I am (or at least _was_) Happosai?"

When there were no challenges to her identity she let out a sigh of relief. "Good. I could have stolen a couple of bras as proof. I don't really like doing that anymore and it would probably make the women angrier than they need to be."

"Considering how drastically I've changed, I am taking steps to have Happosai declared legally dead and me as his heir. I wrote a will while Ranma and I were in China. Ranma has already signed an affidavit that he recognizes the handwriting as that of Happosai. I will need for Soun and Genma to sign similar affidavits to attest to the same thing."

Suspicious, Genma asked, "Why should we help you?"

"Because if you don't, Happosai will be ruled as dying without a will," the blonde answered. "At that point you would get nothing from my estate, while I still have money in Swiss bank accounts that I can access even without the will."

The two fathers exchanged a look and then both shrugged. Genma spoke for both when he said, "Let us look at this will."

After she pulled two sheets of paper from stuff space, Noriko handed them over to the men. "On these sheets the upper part of the page has a photocopy of a part of the will. If you agree that this is my handwriting, you can sign on the line at the bottom of the sheet."

Studying the paper, Genma muttered, "I'd recognize those chicken scratchings anywhere." He took the pen that Noriko gave him and signed. When handed the pen, Soun signed as well.

When she had stowed the papers back into stuff space, Noriko gave an affirmative nod. "Before I get to telling about the bequests, I have a few things I need to say. I will start with Genma and Soun because I know you will pout if I don't."

Both men affected wounded expressions. Under his breath, Genma muttered, "Men don't pout." The expression on his face disagreed with him.

Noriko rolled her eyes. "Soun, Genma, I feel that I owe you both an apology for the more extreme training methods I used on you. Just don't think this means I'm offering to be your slave or anything to atone."

Her expression was stern and she didn't give them time to speak before continuing, "Even with that said – Boys I'm sorry, but you have been a disappointment to me. The training I put you through may have been harsh, but it never put you in deadly danger. Genma, the fact is that you trained Ranma in the Nekoken and other techniques that could have killed him if he had been any less talented. What the hell were you thinking?"

The bald martial artist winced under the rebuke.

The girl continued, "You might be interested in knowing that the stealing, the peeping and other things of that sort I had you do were intended to be a test of your moral character It was a test which you failed, miserably. If you had refused to do those things, I would have deemed you to have sufficient good character to be taught the secrets of Ultimate Mastery in Anything Goes."

Both of the men's eyes reflected their surprise and shock. They thought they had been taught the secrets of ultimate mastery.

Noriko glanced over at the pigtailed boy. "On the other hand, Ranma has the moral character to be worthy of learning those techniques. I started the legal proceedings to have Tendo Noriko granted the title of Grand Master of the Founding School of Anything Goes martial arts as the true heir of Happosai. "

She smirked. "After that paperwork is taken care of I am going to have Ranma declared a master of the Founding School of Anything Goes. Note that I say master, not the Grand Master. Now that I'm young again, I want to hold onto the title for a while."

She turned to the owner of the house. "Tendo Soun, you at least didn't turn to thievery like your friend. You continue to demonstrate your lack of moral character in a different way."

Noriko bowed her head for a moment. When she looked up again, in a gentle tone she said, "Your wife was an admirable woman. You were right to mourn her." She sighed and went on in firmer tones, "You were _not_ right to mourn her for as long as you have. She would not have wanted you to wallow in self-pity. You should have either shouldered her responsibilities as well as your own or you should have found a new wife to help you."

Her gaze turned into a glare. "Instead you withdrew from nearly everything. If Kasumi and Nabiki hadn't stepped up to take on the burden, your whole family would have been thrown out in the street. As for Akane she was 'your darling baby girl' who you let get away with anything. Your training of her was substandard, you allowed her to think she was the best when she was far from it."

"Hey!" Protested Akane, standing up. While she had been staring at the sheet of paper with the autographs of the Senshi, she had caught the mention of her name and turned her attention to hear the criticism of her training.

"Sit down girl!" Noriko turned her glare on the youngest. "I'll get to you later."

When Akane had settled back in her seat, the blonde woman continued. "Even though he didn't ask for it, a lot of the problems in this house revolve around Ranma. Things are also a lot livelier with him around. Whatever else you may want to say about him, things are rarely boring with Ranma here."

There were nods among the seated people. It was a truth none of them could deny.

"Getting back to the will," Noriko said in an aggrieved tone. "To Soun and Genma, I am leaving my entire collection of girly magazines to be divided between them however they see fit. This includes a large number of Playboy, Bikini Babes Monthly, Jugs and Big 'Uns."

The two men receiving the bequest looked less than thrilled. Nodoka looked conflicted. Such a gift was "manly" but was it something she really wanted Genma to have?

"Again, to be divided or shared between you, I bequeath to you several martial arts technique scrolls," the former man continued. "I was not keeping those scrolls here at the house. I have a place where I have a lot of things stored. I will be retrieving the scrolls from those after the legal process is complete on the will."

"Finally we come to money," she said.

At that both of the men perked up. They were going to get money? Ok, this sounded good. You could almost see the yen signs floating through the imaginations of the men.

Noriko looked thoughtful and a touch angry. "The two of you are a pair of the laziest people I have ever had the misfortune to teach. You get worse as you get older. When I thought about that I needed to figure out a way to leave money to you that didn't encourage further laziness."

Now she glared. "I have ordered that a trust fund be set up to award you money on a matching fund basis. You will need to make money, either from a job or from teaching students in your dojo. Every yen you earn will be matched with one from the trust fund. In other words, you must earn money to get any from the trust fund."

Nabiki grinned on hearing that. It was brilliant.

"That is not the only condition on the trust fund," the former man warned. "I know that I used to enjoy a drink once in a while, at least until I got my new body. I can understand why you might want to make an occasional visit to a bar. Drinking to excess will not be tolerated. The trustees in charge of the fund will be checking up on you. If you go out on a binge more than one night in any given week, then you will receive no money from the trust fund that week, regardless of how much you might have earned."

Genma protested, "You can't do that!"

"It's already written in the will," Noriko responded. "I'm not saying you can't go out and get drunk every night of the week if you want to. What I am saying is that the money from the trust fund won't go to support that more than one night per week. The matter is not open to debate."

The two men wilted under the glare she directed at them. "_Hotcha, still got it_," she thought.

The blonde woman next turned to Nodoka and said, "For the most part, for the rest of the family the bequests are fairly simple. Nodoka will be receiving an annuity that will pay her regular amount every month. Genma is not allowed to have access to those funds, although Nodoka may give him some money if she wishes. I advise against doing so. Akane, Nabiki and Kasumi will receive money for college tuition, room, board and allowance for clothing."

"Additional for Akane is this: I plan to open a dojo of my own," the woman stated. "Akane will be awarded free membership in my dojo for as long as she wants to learn, even up to master level if that is what she wants."

At that, Akane was torn. She didn't like the idea of learning from new "re-packaged" Happosai, but she desperately wanted to get better in the Art. She would need to think about that.

Noriko looked around. "As for what I've left to Ranma, I'm going to wait to tell you about that. There are some other matters that will need to be addressed before we get to his inheritance."

"While those are the only bequests that directly apply to this family, you may be curious about some of the rest," She told them. "To Ukyo I am leaving a yattai. She may pick one from a catalog and I will buy it and have it delivered to her. She can even pick one that is much bigger and better equipped than the one that Genma took from her."

She continued, "If she refuses to pick one, I will pick one from the catalog that most closely matches what Ranma can remember of the dowry one. Ranma has promised to pay me back for that, even though he doesn't have to. Ukyo also has another option. If she says she would prefer to concentrate on the restaurant she has, then she can have the value of a yattai in cash and she can use that to make improvements to her existing restaurant."

"To Pantyhose Taro I bequeath a new name," the blonde announced. "On Ranma's recommendation I will not give him a silly name like 'Awesome' or 'Ultimate' but a real name. 'Quiang' is a good, solid Chinese name that means strong or powerful. Once he has the new name he has no reason to bother Ranma or any of the members of this family."

"To Ninomiya Hinako I will give an annuity so that she does not need to work if she doesn't want to."

Soun and Genma looked like they wanted to protest this, but Noriko's glare was focused on them again. They decided that now was not the time to voice their objections.

Resuming, Noriko stated, "As the 'executor' of Happosai's will, I have been given the job of going to some of his hiding places and retrieving a number of magic artifacts and giving them to the Amazons. This is intended to replace some of the treasures that were stolen from their village many years ago. With the exception of the Nanban Mirror, the artifacts are talismans of healing or protection, so there is little chance that they can do much harm with them."

"For my large collection of 'silky darlings,' I will donate the majority of them to a charity that will give them free to women who cannot afford to buy them," noted Noriko. "I do that because I honestly don't remember who I stole all of them from. The majority of the women would have to come under the heading of 'faceless women in a crowd.' I will be keeping some that will fit me for my own use."

At that the other women in the room gave her a glare. She shrugged and explained, "Collecting ki was not the only reason why I took the lingerie. I always admired them for their beauty."

"On the trip through China, Ranma confronted me with a great truth about my groping and lingerie thefts," the blonde said with a sigh. "Even though I wasn't hurting them physically, I was leaving emotional scars. In an effort to make amends for that, I will be using my money to set up counseling centers for women who are victims of rape and other types of sexual abuse. I will also be setting up shelters for abused women."

Eyebrows all around the room went up and eyes widened on hearing that.

"That is pretty much all that you are likely to be interested in," she told them. "Now before I get to the part where I tell you what I am giving Ranma, I have things to say on other subjects. There are matters that need to be cleared up."

"Now, why are Ranma and his father staying here in the house in the first place?" Noriko asked. "The reason goes back to the often mentioned agreement between Soun and Genma or the Tendo and Saotome families. At the time you reached the agreement I wasn't sealed in the cave yet but I was away from Japan. I have also heard it said that the agreement was reached before Ranma was born. Was it also before Akane was born?"

When the question was met with silence Noriko snapped out, "It's a simple enough question. At the time you made the agreement to join the schools had Akane been born yet?"

Soun seemed to tune back into the real world. "Ah… No master, she had not been born yet. Kimiko was pregnant with her at the time."

"What of Nodoka?"

The auburn haired mother answered for herself, "I was told of the agreement a few days after we got the results of my pregnancy test from the laboratory."

Soun asked, "Why are you asking these questions, Master?"

Noriko replied, "Just trying to get the facts straight. Now I know you two don't always plan things very well. What I want to know if you ever considered the possibility that both women would give birth to girls."

"What?" Responded Soun.

Shaking her head at how dense they were being, the blonde clarified, "I want to know if you made any provision in your agreement on how the 'joining of the schools' would be accomplished if both Nodoka's and Kimiko's children had been girls."

Genma finally answered, "Of course we discussed the possibility. We're not stupid, you know."

In a dry tone Noriko said, "I could give you an argument on that. What was the provision?"

The bald martial artist reported, "The provision was that if Nodoka's and my child was not able to marry one of Tendo's children because of incompatible gender, death or other factors, then one of my grandchildren would marry one of Tendo's grandchildren."

The martial Arts grand master asked, "Do you agree that was the wording, Soun?"

The Tendo patriarch nodded. "Yes, that is what I remember."

Genma was confused. "I don't see how that makes a difference. Ranma's not a girl."

Suddenly Ranma stood up and said, "Are you sure about that, Pops?" Suddenly Ranma's form shifted and a buxom redheaded girl stood there. She now put in, "You can't really say that anymore. Ever since Jusenkyo the most you can say is that 'Ranma isn't a girl all of the time.'"

The bespectacled martial artist was on his feet, demanding, "How did you do that?"

The redhead smirked, "A sorceress in Juuban changed the trigger of my curse from water to willpower. Before you ask, it only works for human form Jusenkyo curses and it's not a cure. If I go too long without being in cursed form and I'll transform without willing it any time my mind wanders. I still have to spend half or more of my time in cursed form."

Genma glared at his female son then sat back down, clearly disappointed.

Noriko gave Ranma a nod then resumed talking to everyone. "In the time we've been back in Japan Ranma and I have actually been fairly busy. Ranma had her curse trigger changed and we have been addressing the fiancé mess."

"I've spoken to Miss Kuonji," the blonde explained. "I informed her of the provision in my will as regards to her yattai. When that is settled the dowry is returned and the honor commitment for Ranma to marry Ukyo is resolved and the matter is put on the proper basis, that being if both parties want to get married."

"Ukyo has also been told that Ranma only sees her as a friend and not a romantic prospect. For those and other reasons Ranma doesn't want to marry her. We're giving her time to think about it and will go back to hear her decision later in the week." The former man reported.

She went on, "Immediately before coming here today, we stopped at the Nekohanten. After some discussion, Cologne agreed that there was no real chance that Shampoo would win Ranma's heart. The Elder's Council back in the Joketsuzoku village had already decided that they didn't want to try to use force on someone who could defeat Prince Herb and kill the Phoenix god. While Shampoo may feel inclined to be stubborn about it, Cologne has already indicated that she has overruled anything Shampoo might have to say on the matter."

The blonde girl shook her head. "We haven't spoken to Kuno Kodachi yet and I'm not sure what good that would do. She is someone who is extremely good at denying the truth. There is no formal commitment there. Any obligation there might be with that girl exists solely in her imagination. We will have to work on some ideas about how to deal with her and her delusional brother."

Soun stood up, his expression excited. He exclaimed, "The engagement with the Amazons is off and the one with the okonomiyaki girl is as good as off! This means the schools _will_ be joined! We must call a priest at once."

Author's Note: Sorry to cut things off there, but this chapter was getting too long and I needed to break it up into smaller portions. In the original version of this story that was posted on Media Miner I had wanted to conclude the confrontation with the Tendo's and Ranma's parents in a single chapter. However, I hadn't included the idea of Happosai's will in that version. With the information on the various bequests, it made for a very long chapter.


	18. Chapter 18 The Schools Won't Be Joined

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 16B

The Schools Won't Be Joined

Both Ranma and Akane fixed the Elder Tendo with a glare. The man could be so stupid sometimes.

"Soun, sit down and shut up!" Noriko barked. "Stop being an idiot! You and Genma are almost as guilty of killing any affection between Ranma and Akane as any of the personal difficulties they have between them."

"What?" Genma demanded, "How can you say that? We have only their best interests at heart."

"Is that right?" The blonde woman asked, "They're teenagers who didn't feel ready to be married yet, but that didn't matter to you. As long as they remained hostile to each other you didn't do much more than nudge. If they showed the slightest bit of affection it was, 'the schools will be joined at last,' and 'call the priest, they must be married immediately.'"

"Do you know what you were doing with that kind of behavior?" She asked. Not waiting for an answer, she told them, "You were teaching them, training them. The lesson was that if they felt or showed the least little bit of affection for each other, you two interfering busybodies would come along and try to force them into doing something they didn't want and didn't feel ready for."

The blonde now turned and asked, "Akane, be honest and tell us all how you feel about Ranma. The truth now."

The youngest Tendo looked at the sheet of paper with all the autographs of the Sailor Senshi. After a moment's consideration she said, "I suppose he does have his good points, but that doesn't change the fact that he is a jerk and a pervert. I may have liked him in the past, maybe even loved him, but not anymore."

Noriko wasn't going to let the girl get away with an incomplete answer like that. "Do you want to marry him?"

"No!" she said, "Since you said to be honest I can't really say I hate him, but I find the idea of married to him and living with him as his wife to be a little sickening."

The former man gave the fathers a look that clearly said, "_There, you see_?"

She turned and asked, "Ranma, how do you feel about Akane?"

The redheaded girl looked over at her fiancée before sighing and saying, "I can never relax around her. I never know when something I say is going to set her off so she'll use her mallet to either pound me into the floor or send me flying. Yes, I insult her, but she insults me too. If I'm out of her sight for any length of time she accuses me of 'doing perverted things with my floozies.' She doesn't trust me."

"What did you say to Shampoo on the subject of trust," asked Noriko.

The pigtailed girl answered, "I've been told that a marriage can't survive without trust. I don't trust Shampoo, Akane doesn't trust me. Any marriage between me and either of them would be doomed to fail."

Ranma now glared at the youngest Tendo. "I'm getting tired of being your punching bag. You accuse me of all kinds of bad things without even giving me a chance to defend myself. Then you bash me with a mallet over things that, even if I did do them, don't rate more than a scolding or a slap. You overreact to everything." 

Proving Ranma's point, Akane fired back, "No I don't!" The ghostly outline of a mallet began to form in Akane's hand.

"Akane, stop that!" Noriko barked. "Calm down."

Noriko waited until the mallet had been dispersed and the girl had taken some deep breaths. Finally Noriko said, "Now I want you to apply some logic to this situation if you are even still capable of it." Seeing Akane start to go into rage again, Noriko hurried on, "If Ranma did 'perverted things' with Ukyo, do you imagine she would stay quiet about it?"

With a sullen expression mixed with confusion, Akane asked, "What are you suggesting?"

Relentless now, Noriko said, "If Ranma had sex with Ukyo or even just kissed her on the lips, I'd bet the girl would be bragging about it all over school. She would be getting in your face and bragging that he really was hers and had proved it. Likely she would be demanding that Ranma marry her immediately."

She raked the family with a glare. "You could bet that if Ranma did 'perverted things' with Shampoo he would have been dragged back to the Amazon village so fast that everyone here would have been left wondering what happened. At least that's what would have happened before Saffron was killed."

With a sigh, Noriko continued, "With Kuno Kodachi it's a little harder to call. My guess is that if Ranma did 'something perverted' with her, she'd cling to him like a leach and he'd be unable to get away from her. I'm not saying this to try and talk you into marrying Ranma, I just want the record clear."

Soun spoke up from where he sat, "Akane will do what honor demands."

Noriko looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Really? Do you care so little for your daughter's happiness? I was at the wedding; I saw how Akane acted. Her attitude was not that of a woman finally being united with the man she loves. Her attitude was more that of someone making a terrible sacrifice, probably for sake of family honor."

The blonde girl said, "Purely as a subject of debate, let's say that everyone politely agrees that Ranma and Akane should not be married. That still wouldn't be the end of the plan to unite the schools. Soun still has two other daughters."

"Nabiki!" She snapped the name out. "How do you feel about Ranma?"

Being smart, the mercenary girl had seen this coming. She said, "When Ranma first got here I saw him as a cash cow. (Sorry Ranma.) I also thought of him as a dumb jock. But over time we got talking sometimes and I found out that he's smarter than I originally gave him credit for. I even figured out that he may actually be smarter than I am. I got to where I actually like him. The way I feel about him sort of matches what I've heard some girls saying about their younger brothers." 

Noriko prodded, "So you think of him like a kid brother?"

The brunette nodded. "Yes. I like him but still find him annoying at times. I think if he were in trouble I'd rush to give whatever help I could. I feel sure that he would watch my back if I were in trouble."

She paused a moment then said, "Since you are talking about this in fiancé terms I'd say, I think Ranma would be a good husband, loyal, caring and loving. I'm pretty sure he'd be a great father. But on that part about being a father… I don't see him as the father of _my_ children. The idea of having sex with someone I think of as a brother just feels… wrong."

"So it would be fair to say you can't see yourself married to Ranma?" Noriko summed up.

The middle Tendo daughter shook her head emphatically.

"Kasumi?" The blonde prompted.

The eldest Tendo daughter tilted her head in apparent thought. Finally she said, "I think Ranma is kind, brave and loyal. He is sweet but can sometimes be thoughtless and impulsive. He often speaks without thinking. I know he means no harm when he does that. As far as marriage is concerned, I'm afraid I have to agree with Nabiki. I think of him like a younger brother."

With a little more thought she added, "I suppose that if I were forced into a marriage with Ranma I might overcome those sibling feelings. I can't say for sure. I can say that I would prefer not to be put in that position."

Noriko nodded. "How do you girls feel about intimate relations with another woman?"

Akane said, "Why would I ever want to do anything so perverted?" 

Nabiki shook her head and said, "I know there are rumors about me at school because I haven't had a date with a boy in a long time. The only reason for that is that they're intimidated by my reputation as the Ice Queen. The truth is that I don't swing that way."

Kasumi glanced at Ranma and said, "I'm afraid that goes for me too. I'm sorry Ranma, but I don't think I could do that with another woman, even you in your female form."

Ranma responded, "That's alright, Kasumi. I wouldn't ask you to, or any of you."

Noriko waved them back to their seats. "From the things just said, I would have to believe this would count as both 'incompatible gender' and 'other factors.' The fact of the matter is that none of the people involved in the agreement want to get married. Even if one of the Tendo girls did get married to Ranma's male form, that wouldn't change the fact that her 'husband' would have to spend… I believe the phrase was 'half or more of her time as a girl.'"

The blonde went on, "Perhaps someday Ranma will meet a woman who 'swings both ways' and forge a life with her. It seems a safe bet that it won't be with one of the Tendo women. Under the terms of the agreement and the provisions and conditions placed on it that would mean that the honor commitment would then fall to a child of Ranma's marrying a child of one of the girls here."

Soun was standing. "No! The schools must be joined! Ranma must marry one of my daughters."

Genma stood as well. "Yes! It was agreed! We've been planning this for all of their lives. Everything depends on it."

Noriko raised an eyebrow and shook her head. "Perhaps the schools 'must' be joined, but by your own words on the terms of the agreement and the provisions to it, they don't have to be joined _now_. There is even a question of whether or not the marriage you want would, in fact, 'join the schools.'"

She turned and said, "Ranma, are you ready?"

The redhead nodded and stood up. "For the longest time martial arts were my whole life. It was all I knew. Oh, I knew that some people didn't follow the Art, but Pop taught me that those people weren't important and the things they were interested in were a waste of time and a distraction from the Art."

She glared at Genma. "I was taken from my mother when I was five years old to begin training in the Art. What kid that age knows what he wants to do with his life? If he thinks about it at all he'd probably say that he wants to be something like a fireman or policeman or a samurai because all of them are heroic."

Still glaring, she went on, "I've heard the reason you took me away from Mother was so she wouldn't influence me, make me weak. I don't know, maybe the love of a mother would have made me weak, but I doubt it. I do know that the whole time we were traveling I was starved for parental affection. You may have sired me, but you were never really my father. You were my sensei."

"When you stick to basic martial arts you are a decent teacher of the Art," she conceded. "It's when you get into advanced Art and the 'special techniques' that you mess up. You have no judgment about advanced training techniques. Anything that promised to turn me into an invincible warrior (Like the Nekoken) and you have to try it. You either fail to read the warnings or ignore them if you do read them."

"During that whole time, did you ever really ask me if the Art was what I wanted to do?" She demanded. "No, you _told_ me that the Art was my life. You told me that I should be willing to give up my life for the sake of the Art if it should come to that."

"Well, guess what?" Her glare increased in intensity, "I almost did give up my life, several times. I _did_ lose a portion of my manhood and nearly lost my sanity. On top of that you never let me have any friends. The only time I went to school was when we'd get in trouble with local truant officers by keeping me out. I was ignorant and didn't know how to deal with people."

Genma demanded, "Are you saying you don't want to continue in the Art?"

"I didn't say that!" She was losing her temper and had to control it with an effort. "Let me finish what I'm saying."

The bald martial artist settled back in his seat.

Ranma resumed, "After the failed wedding, I decided that if I were going to run a dojo I would need to know how. I needed to learn how to run a business and how to teach, and for that I needed an education. I started to study harder and to pay attention in class. Nabiki helped me with stuff like learning how to use a computer. It was when working on that stuff that I found out that I'm smarter than I, or anyone else thought I was."

Her tone turned thoughtful. "When I dropped the attitude that nothing outside the Art was important, I found that I was actually getting interested in things like math and science. I even have a talent for Science that startled the teachers. (I still find history boring.) I was on the path to making up for all of the schooling that I missed from traveling around. That's when I found Master Happosai lying on the front walk, more dead than alive."

She went on, "I had to figure out a way to keep him alive, and I did it. Even if I wasn't thrilled about who I was helping, I was glad to be helping. When the leader of an Amazon patrol called me a healer because how I was using my ki to keep Happosai alive, I liked how that made me feel. Then in the village where we were waiting for the new passport for Noriko that Nabiki was sending, I spent time working in the medical clinic there."

"What are you getting at?" Genma demanded.

"I want to be a doctor," Ranma stated. "I know now that I'm smart enough to learn what I need to."

"A doctor?" Genma wasn't sure he could believe what he was hearing. "What about the Art? It was your dream to be the best."

"No, that was _your_ dream," Ranma countered. "I used to think it was my dream, but I learned differently. Oh, don't worry that I'll give up martial arts completely. It was too big a part of my life to totally give it up. I figure I'll be like Dr. Tofu – a doctor who does martial arts on the side."

"No!" Genma could feel his dream slipping away from him. To live in cushy retirement while Ranma's efforts supported him was what he wanted. "You're going to be the best martial artist of your generation."

"And what do I do with those skills?" Ranma demanded. "I know 'It is the duty of a martial artist to protect those who cannot protect themselves,' but how often does the chance come along to actually protect the weak. Most of the time I've used my martial arts skills defending myself from people who want to prove something by beating me. That's not helping people."

She went on, "If I become a doctor I would be helping people every day, treating injuries, curing diseases, saving lives. It's what I want to do."

Before Genma could voice another protest, Nodoka said in a dreamy tone, "My son, a doctor. That would be so wonderful."

"No-Chan, how could you say that?" Genma was starting to feel betrayed. "You're married to a martial artist. Don't you want your son to follow in his father's footsteps? Don't you want to see him be the best?"

In an angry tone the auburn haired mother said, "Yes I want him to be the best. I want him to be the best at whatever he wants to do. I think it would be wonderful if he became a doctor."

Now even angrier, Genma said, "Boy, if you abandon the family's martial arts school, then you will no longer be a Saotome. I will disown you. You will become a ronin. Do you want that?"

Nodoka wasn't having it. "Saotome Genma you will do no such thing!" She dropped the cloth from around the Saotome honor blade and said, "Since you were gone for ten years, you totally neglected your duties as Saotome clan head. It was by a vote of the rest of the clan that I was selected to assume those duties. _I_ have the final authority on who is or is not to be removed from the clan rolls."

"But No-Chan, he is about to dishonor all that I have worked for, the training, the effort, the suffering and sacrifice. For doing such a thing he deserves to be disowned." Genma wasn't doing a very good job of reading the signals that his wife was giving him.

With a metallic sound she drew her sword and in an instant the point was but a finger's width away from the bridge of Genma's nose. Nodoka said, "In the last ten years you have done more to bring dishonor on the family name than anyone in the entire past history of the clan. When we were finally reunited I had hopes that you would mend your ways, but it seems that was a vain hope."

The bald martial artist's eyes crossed as he looked at the tip of the blade so close to his face. He was listening now as Nodoka continued, "Physician is an honorable profession. By choosing it, Ranma may be able to restore some of the clan honor that you have taken away. Perhaps he could help to dispel the whispers that say the Saotomes are a family of cheats and thieves."

The Saotome matriarch announced, "There will be no more talk of disowning Ranma. If you persist in such talk, it would be within my authority as the head of the clan to divorce you and have _you_ removed from the clan roster. There are members of the clan who have been pressuring me to do that anyway. So far I have resisted doing so. It would seem I may have to reconsider my position on that." 

How had things gotten so badly out of control? To go from having the joining of the schools virtually assured and Ranma nearing the goal of being the best of his generation to this? If Ranma didn't marry a Tendo and gave up martial arts, Genma might actually have to (gasp) work for a living. He was getting too old for that sort of thing. Still, to argue the point now could be hazardous to his health.

"If… if you say so, No-Chan. He can be a doctor." There was still a chance. The boy may be an excellent martial artist, but he didn't have the kind of brainpower it took to be a doctor. When he failed, he'd have to go back to martial arts. Yes, that was the way. It would delay the accomplishment of his dream but wouldn't destroy it completely.

Soun now stood up. "If Ranma is not going to marry one of my daughters, that removes the reason for him staying in this house. I'm afraid that I'll have to ask him to leave. Saotome, you are my friend so you can stay until your house is repaired, but I must ask that you and your wife leave as well as soon as you have a livable house to move into. If Ranma is so lost to honor than he will not live up to his commitment, I must demand that Ranma leave at once. Add to that the cost of repairs from all of fights against his rivals who come here. Then the is the huge amount of food he eats. He may take the time to remove any of his belongings that are still in the guest room."

Ranma smirked, "So you're kicking me out?"

The mustachioed martial artist replied, "I'm sorry, Ranma. Your presence has been a source of disruption since you first came here. I was willing to put up with it when you were going to marry Akane, but that is no longer the case."

Ranma gave an amused snort. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to let me stay until I find a new place."

Soun shook his head. "No, Ranma. I'm sorry, but I must insist you leave right away. The most I'm willing to bend on that is to let you stay the night tonight and leave in the morning."

The redhead nodded. "I expected you might take that attitude. Other than a few odds and ends in the guest room the only belongings that I don't already have in my pack and the suitcase in the genkan are the girl clothes mom got me when she thought I was Tendo Ranko. I may need some help with those."

Genma looked surprised. "You want those things?"

The pigtailed girl gave him a pitying look. "When I found out there was no cure to the curse, I finally started to accept that at least half of the time I'm going to be a girl. If I'm going to get my girl form to grow up to match my male form I'm going to have to spend more time as a girl than I do as a guy for a few years. I've come to understand that real girl's clothes are more comfortable on a girl's body. So… yeah, I want those girl clothes. At least the stuff that's not too frilly."

"Oh, why is that?" Nodoka asked.

"Look Mom, I'm sorry about this," Ranma apologized. "Even if I'm willing to accept my girl side as a part of my life, that doesn't mean that I'm going to be your ideal of a lady when I'm in this form. I have no problem with basic skirts, blouses and stuff like that are Ok for a tomboy to wear, but not the real frilly stuff. What I don't decide to keep, I can donate to charity."

Nodoka nodded. "I guess I can live with that. Where will you go?"

"I'll help with that," Noriko put in. "I know of apartments that are available. Until he gets a job, Ranma can owe me the money for the rent. It won't be a problem. I'll call a moving company to send a truck over to pick up Ranma's stuff and to pack my stuff as well."

A delighted smile lit up Soun's face. "You're leaving too, Master?"

"During the time we were traveling in China, Ranma and I became friends," Noriko explained. "I don't want to stay in a place where my friend is not welcome. Besides, I'm sure you will be happy enough to see me gone from your house. In addition to that, now that I'm young again, I think it's time that I started to take a more active interest in my business affairs. I think I'd do that better somewhere else."

Now it was Nabiki's turn to break in. "What business affairs you are talking about? I've been wondering where all the money you have been talking about was coming from."

The blonde grinned. "150 years ago I bought several parcels of land around the Tokyo area. At that time land was cheap. Now, the management of those properties and the buildings sitting on them is a pretty profitable business. Until now I've had other people handling those properties. I think I'm going to start taking part in that operation myself."

Hearing that, Nabiki asked, "Say, are you hiring?"

Laughing, Noriko said, "I may be the owner, but I have left the running of the business to managers for so long that I am not in control. I have no say in hiring. Before you consider applying you might want to take some business classes so you have the formal education for the kind of job you're looking for. Right now you have 'street smarts' but you also need some more 'book smarts' to go with those."

The mercenary girl nodded. "That sounds reasonable."

The blonde woman had a thoughtful expression on her face as she said, "Maybe I could arrange some kind of internship for you while you are getting the rest of your schooling. I'll look into it."

The middle Tendo Daughter grinned. "That sounds great! I think I'd like that." To herself she thought, "_Then I'd be able to move out. Let's just see how long Daddy can keep a roof over his head without me managing the household finances and the money I bring in_."

"Before we go any farther I think it would be a good idea for me to tell you what my will has in it for Ranma," Noriko announced. She looked over at Ranma and smiled. "Even the most prideful and stiff-necked man will usually accept a gift of money if it comes from the estate of a dead man. Ranma has sworn that he will pay me back for the money I will be giving him."

"Yeah, 'cause you're not dead," Ranma countered. "The name Happosai may be dead, but only reason we aren't trying to say his spirit and soul are still living is that the law doesn't recognize the existence of magic. So it's a loan, not a gift from a dead man."

With a fond smile, Noriko shook her head. "Stubborn. Anyway, what my will gives to Ranma is full tuition, books, room, board and other expenses all the way through college and medical school."

"Also provided for in the will is the grant of Mastery in the Founding School of Anything Goes," the girl proclaimed.

At that both Soun and Genma sat up, looking angry. "You can't do that!" protested Genma. "I haven't finished training the boy!"

"Oh, I think you are finished." Noriko's tone was steel. "Or are you trying to claim that you have more to teach Ranma than the founder of the school?"

Under the fierce glare, Genma backed down.

"Before I was so rudely interrupted, I started to say that I have granted Ranma Mastery in the founding school and will grant him a teaching certificate as soon as I am recognized as the Grand Master of the school," the former man stated. "I tend to think that in study for a career in medicine, Ranma won't have time for much teaching, but he will be welcome in my dojo any time he wishes. Perhaps he can squeeze in one class a week."

"I will also be giving Ranma several scrolls on martial arts techniques," she continued. "There will also be books and scrolls on ki techniques, with heavy emphasis on healing. I have scrolls for magic healing as well. I admit that I never mastered all of them myself, but I think Ranma may have the needed talent for it."

Now Genma got angry again. "Ranma doing magic! I forbid it! No son of mine will have anything to do with magic."

"Oh, so it's Ok to have magic (like a curse) done to me, but you don't want me doing magic of my own, is that it?" Ranma growled. "Since you were ready to throw me out of the family, I think you have lost all right to have any say in what I do to further my career as a healer."

"But..."

"But nothing!" Ranma stood up and declared, "I'm going to go pack."

As Ranma headed off to the attic to collect the boxes of girl's clothing, Noriko lingered in the living room.

The former man looked over to oldest Tendo daughter and said, "Kasumi dear, from all of the books you've borrowed from Dr. Tofu, I've gotten the idea that you would also be interested in a career in medicine. That is why I put the provision in my will to pay for your schooling."

"Oh my. That is a most generous offer. I'll have to think about it. I do still have father and Akane to take care of, even if Nabiki moves out to go to business school."

The blonde girl nodded and smiled. "You think about it. You should keep in mind that you aren't getting any younger. I just hope that you don't get to a point where you finally make your decision and find that life has passed you by."

"Oh!" Kasumi considered that carefully. Maybe Father and Akane could survive without her after all. She'd give herself a week to think it over.

Noriko smiled at Kasumi, then left to go to her room. The former man looked over the stuff she had accumulated during the time she was an old man. Per the terms of the will, the magazines would belong to Genma and Soun. She stacked them at the side of the room in a few untidy piles.

All of the clothing in the room, other than the stolen lingerie, was suited to a body that was only two feet tall. Most of it was old and worn, so it probably wouldn't even be suitable for donation to charity. Likely she could give them to Kasumi or whoever took over from her if she took Noriko's offer. The old garments could be used as cleaning rags

The books and scrolls would have to be boxed up and she would have the movers take the futon and writing desk as well as the chair. She had used a normal sized chair with a stack of books to raise herself up to the needed height. Now that she was a normal size herself she wouldn't need the books to use the chair. She would wait until later to go through the scrolls and sort out which ones would be given to which people.

Now that she thought about it, she remembered that the futon, desk and chair had been in the room when she first moved in. The bookcases had been added later, but they also belonged to the Tendos and had been moved into the room from the attic. It might be best to just leave all the furniture and just take the books and stuff.

She went to the plastic boxes that she used for the prizes of her collections of "Silky Darlings." She had an excellent eye for style and size and easily picked out the ones that would fit her as well as the ones that would fit Ranma. When she finished with those, she went to the cardboard boxes that contained the more ordinary undergarments and sorted them as well.

When Noriko went down the hall she carried one of the plastic boxes with her. She knocked on the door of the guest room. "Come in," came the voice from inside.

Ranma was still in girl form. She was looking through a box of clothing. It appeared she had gone to the attic and pulled out the boxes of clothing that had been put away from what Nodoka had purchased for "Ranko." There were six such boxes. Beside the box there was a pile. While Noriko stood there Ranma added another item to the pile, a blue sundress.

The redhead explained, "I didn't see any point in taking the stuff that I'm not going to want to keep. I'm separating out the frillier, fancier stuff and I'm going to leave it here. Akane's the closest to my size so she can have this stuff or they can donate it to charity if she doesn't want it."

Noriko nodded. "You go ahead and sort that out. Do keep in mind that there may come a time when you will want to get dressed up in something frilly. Maybe you will want to go to a party as a girl."

Ranma nodded. That did make some sense. She looked at the pile of discards and picked a couple outfits to put back. Those were pretty, but with an elegant simplicity instead of a lot of frills. It appeared that Ranma's tastes ran to simple garments.

Looking up from her sorting, Ranma asked, "What's in the box?"

"Oh, this is some items from my collection of silky darlings," Noriko said with a trace of humor. "I already told the family that I was going to keep some for myself, but these I pulled out because they are your size."

"Wait a minute!" the redhead protested. "You know I don't like lacy, frilly stuff."

"You don't have to wear them if you don't want to," Noriko promised. Silently she added, "_I wouldn't mind seeing you model some of these for me_." Out loud she said, "But you might find you like some of them. Now that you know the clothing swap spell you don't have the excuse of changing to male form with girl clothing on."

Frowning the younger girl reached out to take the box. "Ok, I'll take them, but I'm not promising anything about wearing them."

"Fair enough," the blonde said with a shrug.

Having delivered her gift, Noriko informed Ranma, "I need to make some phone calls."

She went downstairs and said, "Soun, I need to use your phone. Don't worry, I won't make any toll calls."

The Tendo patriarch said, "Please feel free, Master." He was willing to agree to almost anything that would get his Master out of the house faster.

Noriko called the company that handled the management of her properties. She used a special number that was staffed around the clock rather than the public number that was closed at this hour. It took some talking to establish that she had the right to call on the services of the operator at this phone number, but when she did the representative on the line was most respectful.

At Noriko's request a computer search was conducted to find a vacant apartment within walking distance of Furinkan High School. A three bedroom apartment was found that had full bathing facilities including furo, a fully equipped kitchen as well as its own laundry. As it turned out it was also possible to have the people at the real estate company arrange for having utilities turned on, cable TV hooked up and phone service connected.

With a little further talking she was able to arrange for furniture, bedding and such things. It turned out that the property management company had some furniture that was used to put in apartments or homes that were being shown for possible rental. Noriko shrugged when she heard. She decided that she could live with that.

She also asked if there were any computers available. Since it was a large company, they did have computers for replacements within their own offices, so it was no problem to have two of them allocated to her new apartment.

The operator sounded a little annoyed at being asked, but she was able to contact a moving company to come to the Tendo home. She said she could arrange for them to be there in the morning. There would be a crew that would pack Noriko's belongings. They should be finished before noon and have everything loaded on the truck before lunch.

When she finished she went back upstairs and again knocked on Ranma's door. When admitted to the room she said, "I hope you don't mind having me as a roommate but I've arranged for a three bedroom apartment. You can sleep in one bedroom, I can take another and the third bedroom we can use as a sort of library/office. I've arranged for furniture, utilities and that kind of stuff. I've also arranged for each of us to have a computer."

Ranma raised an eyebrow. "Do you know how to use a computer?"

"No," the blonde admitted. "I'm sure you can teach me the basics."

The redhead shrugged. "Ok. And no, I guess I don't mind sharing a place. We've been sleeping in the same bedroom for weeks and it wasn't a problem. Having separate bedrooms is enough privacy."

"Good." She said, "The movers will come tomorrow morning after you've left for school. Since they're used to moving whole houses full of furniture, a few boxes from a couple of rooms won't take them long at all. Everything should be moved by lunch and furniture will be delivered right after lunch. The place should be completely set up and ready to live in by the time you get done with school. I'll try to meet you at the school gates so I can show you the way there."

She handed the redhead a piece of paper. "This is the address. I have a vague idea of where it is but will find out for sure tomorrow. This was all I could find on short notice that was in walking distance of Furinkan."

She suddenly got a big grin on her face. "I had another idea about what we could do about Kuno Tatewaki."

Noting the grin, Ranma grinned in response. "What's in that devious mind of yours?"

"Well, we'll have to check with the Amazon's first," She said. "I was just wondering how the 'mighty Blue Thunder' would react to being changed into a girl himself."

"But I thought you said the Amazons didn't have any Nyaniichuan water at the restaurant," Ranma countered. 

"True," agreed the blonde. "Even if they don't have the permanent curse water, I'd bet there's a really good chance they have some of the instant kind. That's really better for using on Kuno anyway."

The redhead couldn't suppress a chuckle. "He'd still say it was evil sorcery, and he'd be partly right. But even he couldn't deny that magic can change a boy into a girl. It's at least worth a try."

The former man said, "Even if the Amazons don't have any of the instant Nyniichuan on hand, I have the address to order some. Maybe when we get your computer set up, we could order from their website."

"Maybe while you're getting that, you could get some Instant Naniichuan to use on his sister," the redhead suggested.

"I like that idea." Noriko grinned. Then her manner sobered. "I would think it would at least make her stop wanting to kill the 'red haired hussy,' but would it also stop her from being interested in her 'Ranma-Sama'?"

Ranma shrugged, "I guess it depends on whether she swings both ways or not. I guess I'd settle for her not trying to kill me anymore. Anything more than that, I'll count as a bonus."

"Good point," agreed Noriko. "Sometimes you have to take what you can get."

"Well," Ranma pointed to three boxes she had pushed into the corner. "Those are the clothes I'm leaving behind. The rest I'm keeping. That includes skirts, blouses, a few dresses, some slacks, pajamas, underwear and shoes."

She added, "To give my girl form time to grow, I plan to be in boy form only for school for at least a year, maybe even all the way through college. Because of that I'll need a good assortment of girl clothes. This will do for now. Obviously I'll need new stuff when I do grow."

She looked around the room. "I think I'm about as ready to move as I'm going to get. I'm going to read for a little while then I'll turn in." From stuff space she pulled one of the books she had gotten from the Spell Book store.

Noriko nodded. "I've done what I can to prepare. I've gathered the stuff I want to leave behind into a pile. The rest will have to wait until tomorrow for the movers to pack up. I'd start packing now, but I don't have the boxes for it and there's too much for stuff space."

They bid each other goodnight and separated. When Noriko settled into her futon she spent some time just staring at the ceiling. It took her a while to figure out what was bothering her. For the first time since Noriko become a woman, Ranma wasn't sleeping close enough to hear him/her breathing. It seemed strange to think about how much comfort she had drawn from that.

She felt a powerful temptation to roll up her futon and carry it to the guest room to sleep beside Ranma. No! She could do this! After all, in the apartment she would be in a separate bedroom. She had to get used to this.

There was still a chance for her. All of the engagements were ended and Ranma didn't even question sharing an apartment with Noriko. The blonde girl could tell the boy had feelings for her. Given his background, it was natural that he would have trouble recognizing those feelings and even more trouble expressing them. Perhaps living in close proximity with Noriko and having no other people at home to offer distractions would be what he needed.

Noriko drifted off to sleep. Her dreams were visited by visions of a black haired boy with a pigtail and equally by further visions of a red haired girl. Some of the dreams featured herself being held in strong masculine arms or her own arms holding the smaller form of the redheaded girl.

Author's Note: Ranma has been kicked out of the house, but it's not like he wasn't expecting it. At least his mother wouldn't let Genma kick him out of the family. Ranma can still stay in Tokyo and complete his education. There are still matters to be settled with Ukyo and the Kunos. More on that in the next chapter.

Thanks to UNSpacy000 for help in beta reading this chapter.


	19. Chapter 19 Back to School

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 17

Back to School

Since Nodoka had come to live with the Tendos while her house was being repaired, Genma was sharing a room with her. Thus it was that the following morning Genma tried to sneak down the hall and quietly open the door to Ranma's room. This time he was met by Noriko who had made a point to get up early. The noise of Genma being knocked into the wall was enough to wake Ranma. The two girls then ganged up on the older Saotome. Thus Ranma avoided a dip in the koi pond. Instead, an unconscious panda was left floating among the agitated fish in the pond.

With that irritant effectively removed, Ranma and Noriko sparred with each other. The two girls moved at speeds and used moves that Genma couldn't hope to match.

When the girls finished their spar, Ranma walked over to the pond where a panda was regaining consciousness. When she was sure the panda was awake enough to hear and comprehend, she told him, "Not that it wasn't fun kicking your sorry butt again, but you need to be aware of the new reality. Now that I've been kicked out of the house, I won't be here tomorrow for you to play with. When I do spar, I'll be doing it with the Grand Master of our school. Even with that I will be cutting back in my training in the Art so I can get more serious with my schooling."

The panda held up a sign, "Ungrateful boy." He flipped the sign, "After all I've done for you; this is the thanks I get." A new sign said, "Oh, the shame to have such a disgraceful child."

The redheaded girl shook her head. "'Ungrateful?' What do I have to be grateful for? Should I thank you for threatening to throw me out of the family, Jusenkyo or maybe the Nekoken? You know, I'm glad Mr. Tendo is kicking me out of the house. It means I won't have to put up with your crap every day." She went in to breakfast.

When Ranma got to the dining table she saw Akane had returned from her regular morning run and was sitting there in her school uniform. The youngest Tendo seemed oddly quiet instead of angry at Ranma. Wanting to keep her last morning in the Tendo home as peaceful as possible, Ranma just gave Akane a nod in greeting.

Uncharacteristically, Akane seemed unsure of herself, gnawing on her lower lip as if trying to come to a decision. After a moment the black haired girl tried, "Uh… Ranma?"

Still hoping to keep things peaceful, Ranma tried to keep her irritation out of her voice. "Yes Akane?"

The youngest Tendo said, "Normally I wouldn't listen to anything someone like Noriko said because of what she was like in the past. This time I have to admit that what she said made sense."

Frowning, the redhead asked, "Noriko said a lot of things last night. What specifically are you talking about?"

The other girl looked at the table for a moment. "I'm talking about Ukyo and Shampoo. I mean what Noriko said about how they would act if you were perverted with them. She was right. I'm… sorry I accused you of doing that."

Ranma's eyes widened a little. Akane was apologizing? That was different. Well, it was a good start but didn't go far enough. "What about the mallet?"

"Yeah, about that…" She seemed to be having trouble finding words. Finally she said, "I… overreacted. You were right that you didn't deserve being malleted for the things I accused you of. It's just that I get so mad sometimes."

Noriko spoke up. "Akane, if you really feel you have to use a mallet, you should give some thought to using a real mallet instead the one made of ki."

"What?" Akane looked confused. "Why?" Ranma looked confused as well. Was the older woman actually encouraging Akane to use a real mallet?

The blonde explained, "Your mallet is a ki attack based on anger. The more you use it, the more anger builds up in your aura. That can make your temper worse. You need to either learn an attack based on pure, emotionless ki, or start using a real mallet that doesn't require any ki at all. Either that or get better control of your temper and stop using a mallet completely."

The youngest Tendo frowned. "I don't think Daddy will teach me ki techniques. When I ask, he says I don't need to know that stuff or at least not yet."

Shaking her head sadly, Noriko said, "Such a shame. It makes me sad to see someone with such potential being held back."

She sat for a moment in silent contemplation. Since Akane was the daughter of one of her students, she was an heiress of sorts. It wasn't the girl's fault if Soun had wimped out on her training. Finally Noriko said, "I already told you about the dojo I plan to open. You have a standing offer to join, free of charge and learn all you are capable of learning. Part of that would involve learning ki techniques. "

The youngest Tendo daughter felt tempted. On the one hand it would feel like betraying her father, on the other he had given her hardly any instruction in the last few years. "I'll have to think about that."

Noriko nodded. "You do that." She paused a moment before saying, "Since we're being so honest this morning I think that it's time that another falsehood is laid to rest. Ranma and I spoke of this before." 

Ranma frowned in thought before her eyes widened. "Is this what I think it's about? Or should I say _who_?"

"Yes," was the short answer.

"Noriko, I promised on my honor." Ranma protested.

The blonde replied, "And how often has that promise been used against you? I didn't promise, so I'm not bound by it. It's time for the lies and deception to come to an end."

Looking both confused and angry, Akane demanded, "Are you saying that Ranma has been lying to me about something?"

Noriko shook her head. "No, Ranma has not been lying." She had placed unusual emphasis on the name. "She was withholding the truth. She made a promise on her honor not to tell anyone. She tried to drop hints that would allow you to figure out the truth for yourself but you never took the hints."

"Hints?" The youngest Tendo was getting even more confused. "What are you talking about?"

The blonde rolled her eyes at how obtuse the girl was. "Did you ever wonder why Ranma calls Ryoga 'P-Chan', 'pork-butt', 'bacon breath' or just 'pig'?"

The girl scowled and fired back with her stock answer, "He was picking on Ryoga like he always does. Ranma claims Ryoga is a friend but treats him really badly. He's always fighting with Ryoga."

The former man sighed. Akane was in denial; that much was clear. "Ranma fights Ryoga because the boy attacks her, often with no warning or challenge. Frequently he'll try to ambush Ranma. The only thing he'll say is 'Ranma, prepare to die!" and then he attacks. If Ranma were any less skilled of a martial artist than she is, she would be dead now or maybe just crippled."

Shaking her head, Akane protested, "No! That can't be. Ranma is always picking on him."

"No, she's not," the older girl replied. "Ranma doesn't have a vindictive bone in her body." Well there were the training back in the village in China. While it had been for her benefit, Ranma did seem to take pleasure in seeing the effects it had on her. Well, that wouldn't help her argument, so she didn't mention it.

With another sigh, Noriko began again. Akane was obviously not going to take hints. It would be necessary to spell things out. "Ryoga has a Jusenkyo curse, like Ranma does." 

Anger was fading to be replaced by confusion. "He turns into a girl?" The way Ranma was a water magnet and always changing, it seemed a safe bet that others with Jusenkyo curses would attract water at odd times as well. She felt sure she would have noticed Ryoga changing into a girl.

Noriko shook her head. "No, not a girl, an animal. You've seen his cursed form before. Haven't you ever noticed that your pet P-Chan wears the same kind of bandana that Ryoga wears? Haven't you noticed that Ryoga is never around when P-Chan is here? Haven't you noticed that Ryoga will often disappear when P-Chan shows up or the other way around? P-will disappear when Ryoga shows up." 

Akane was shaking her head. "You're trying to say that Ryoga changes into P-Chan? That's impossible!"

"Is it?" Noriko leaned forward, her glare boring into Akane. "It would be easy enough test it out. Next time you see Ryoga, throw some cold water on him like you've done to Ranma so often. Or if you see P-Chan first, then toss him in the furo."

Akane's eyes went wide as she remembered past incidents. In a quiet voice she said, "Several times when P-Chan came in out of the rain, I wanted to bathe him in the furo to warm him up, but he always struggled to get away from me when I tried it. I just thought he was afraid the water was too hot."

Noriko said, "If you had succeeded in getting him into the hot water you would have been subjected to the spectacle of a naked Hibiki Ryoga." She had to wonder if Akane would have enjoyed the sight or been repulsed.

Several other remembered incidents were flitting through Akane's head. The bandana, the convenient appearances and disappearances and the aversion to hot water. It also seemed significant that Ryoga always carried an umbrella and went to great pains to avoid getting water on him when he fought. It all added up. She didn't want to believe it, but the evidence was too strong.

"THAT PERVERT!" She screamed. "He slept in my bed, listened to me tell him all of my deepest secrets, watched me change clothes. I'LL KILL HIM!"

The tomboy just sat and seethed for a moment before she amended, "No, killing is too good for him. I'll castrate him?"

Noriko and Ranma both winced but didn't speak. Both just sat and watched for a while. Finally Ranma advised, "Calm down. You really shouldn't think so badly about Ryoga. What he did was bad, but I can understand the reasons he did it for." 

The angry tomboy demanded, "What _reason_ would justify what he did?"

Ranma sighed. "Because he was lost so much of the time he was very lonely. I guess you could say he was starved for affection even if he had to be a pet animal to get it. As for your secrets, if he ever told anyone about them I've never heard it." She didn't say that the Lost Boy had used some of the information Akane had spoken to work on breaking up the engagement. There seemed no point in mentioning it now that the engagement was broken.

After a pause to let Akane absorb that, Ranma continued, "I doubt Ryoga ever really watched when you changed clothes. He was so shy that if he saw a girl in her underwear, he'd get a nosebleed. If he actually saw a girl naked, he'd get a really _bad_ nosebleed and pass out. I'd bet he turned his head away when you were changing clothes."

She had seen some of the nose bleeds, but the behavior wasn't consistent. Akane protested, "I've seen you and him together when you were topless in your girl form. He wasn't passing out then."

Ranma shook her head. She explained, "He knows about my curse. He doesn't think of me as a girl. A few times when I was disguised I caused him nosebleeds. Sometimes he got a nosebleed even when he knew it was me."

She continued, "If you're going to be mad at him, be mad for the right reasons. He lied to you and abused your trust. He let you believe him to be a simple animal when he wasn't. Maybe he is a pervert for snuggling up to you in pig form, maybe not. I'm not the one to judge that. I do suggest that you hear his side of it _before_ you kill him." She didn't mention the other threatened punishment.

With a sullen expression the youngest Tendo said, "Ok, I'll listen to what he has to say before I do anything seriously painful to him."

Ranma thought to herself how glad she was that she wasn't the Lost Boy. The next time he showed his face at the Tendo Dojo was likely to be an unpleasant experience for him. If Ranma saw him first she would give a warning, but doubted if she would be listened to.

Before Ranma's thoughts could proceed farther, Akane turned and fixed her glare on the red haired martial artist again. "You KNEW about it and didn't tell me?"

The redhead frowned and replied, "I promised on my honor not to tell. You heard Noriko. I tried to give you hints, but you ignored them. Almost everybody else knew. Your dad knew and he never told you."

Soun ducked behind his newspaper to get away from the glare his youngest daughter was directing at him.

By this time they had finished with their meal. Nabiki had already headed out, Akane and Ranma went out next. Ranma didn't wait for Akane this time but ran ahead on the fence, still in girl form. She changed back into a boy just before going in the school gate.

As Ranma ran through the front gate, Kuno charged out from behind a tree, brandishing his bokken and shouting, "Hold, foul sorcerer! Where…"

The pigtailed boy just shouted in passing, "Sorry, Kuno. I don't have time to play with you today. I need to see your father."

Angry at being so casually dismissed, the kendo champion shouted back, "But my father…" The samurai wannabe's words ended up being directed at Ranma's retreating back. "Is not here." It was too late; Ranma was inside the building.

Ranma quickly made his way to the administration office only to find that in the time he'd been gone the principal had left on one of his frequent trips to Hawaii. He was also happy to see that Ms. Hinako was there to help him out. He was able to get re-registered without too much trouble.

After a month's absence, the students of Furinkan were once again subjected to the unsettling sight of Ranma paying attention in class. They had seen this before the absence but all of them had believed it was just a temporary aberration. Now the strangeness was escalated. Not only was Ranma paying attention but he was taking notes and raising his hand to ask questions. It seemed positively eerie.

During lunch, people crowded around Ranma but he patted a stack of books and pleaded that he had too much to catch up on to socialize. When Kuno came by, he noticed that the fair Tendo Akane was not with the boy. That was a good sign but not enough. The kendo champion demanded, "What have you done with the beauteous pigtailed girl?"

"I haven't done anything with her," Ranma replied with a sigh. "I can tell you that as far as I know, she's in town and she's healthy. She's not restrained, locked up or otherwise imprisoned." He shaded his eyes with his hand and checked the position of the sun. "Knowing her, she's probably eating lunch right now."

"Whither has she gone?" The kendo champion asked. He hoped the foul sorcerer might slip and reveal something of use.

Ranma frowned. It was an interesting question. Was his girl body in some alternate dimension waiting to be swapped out with his male form? Or was it an actual physical transformation and not an exchange? If that were the case then she wasn't really anywhere at the moment. It was a disturbing thought.

After a moment in thought, Ranma answered, "I don't know exactly where she is right now."

Frowning, the kendoist asked, "Then how would you know that she was partaking of a midday repast?" 

Ranma rolled his eyes in annoyance. "I didn't say that's what she's doing, I only said she probably is. It is the right time of the day and she has a healthy appetite."

The kendo champion wore an expression of extreme confusion. Ranma said, "Look Kuno, the pigtailed girl is out on her own business. What that business is, I don't know. I'm not in control of her the way you think I am." He thought, "_At least no more than anyone is in control of herself_."

Since the idiot was here now, it was time to dangle a little of the bait for the trap. "If you can have just a little bit of patience, I can tell you something very important about her in a few days, maybe less."

"Important information regarding the pigtailed goddess?" Was the foul sorcerer ready to release his grip on the pigtailed one? Perhaps he tired of her. If that were the case then the scion of the noble house of Kuno would be there to shower the pigtailed goddess with loving affection. Perhaps the fact that Saotome had arrived this morning without the fierce tigress Akane was significant as well.

Ranma nodded. "That's right, information. Don't bother trying to buy this from Nabiki, she doesn't know it. Now if you don't mind, I have discovered that I actually care about my education." He turned back to his books.

The delusional kendo champion was so excited by the prospect of information about his beloved that he didn't notice that he had effectively been dismissed. Even if Ranma had said that Nabiki didn't know the information, Kuno wasn't going to believe the foul sorcerer that easily. He rushed immediately to the table where the mercenary girl was sitting.

In a peremptory tone, Kuno said, "Tendo Nabiki, I would speak with you."

Giving a smile they didn't reach her eyes, the brunette asked, "What can I do for you today, Kuno baby?"

He glanced back toward where Ranma was sitting, then said, "The foul sorcerer Saotome has claimed that he has important information regarding the pigtailed goddess. He has said that it is information which you do not possess."

The mercenary girl didn't like it when Saotome did this sort of thing, it tended to cut into her profits. He probably wasn't even going to charge for his information. Still, she kept a pleasant expression and said, "It is possible. He has 'spoken' to her more recently than I have." Kuno didn't notice the odd emphasis she put on the word "spoken."

Before he could say more, Nabiki went on. "Even if I don't know what information Ranma may have, I have something big to tell you about Ranma and my little sister."

Now sounding eager, Kuno demanded, "What news of the fierce tigress Tendo Akane?"

The mercenary girl shook her head. "Oh, no. News this big isn't free. 50,000 yen." The middle Tendo held out her hand.

Scowling, the kendo champion pulled out his wallet and counted out the bills. When Nabiki had caused the money to disappear, she said, "Ranma and my sister have broken off their engagement. They are no longer getting married. Because of that, my father kicked Ranma out of the house."

"YES!" Kuno stood and thrust both fists in the air. "The heavens reward the righteous! The foul sorcerer has released his hold upon my two loves. Now nothing shall stand in the way of my claiming them."

Nabiki rolled her eyes before saying, "You might want to talk to Akane before you try 'claiming' anyone. She may not _want_ to be claimed like that." She didn't mention the pigtailed girl. She figured Ranma could take care of himself.

"Nonsense!" The clueless samurai wannabe exclaimed. "Now that the foul sorcerer's vile enchantments are no longer clouding her mind, the lovely Akane is free to declare her true heart. She will acknowledge her love for me."

The middle Tendo daughter sighed. "I don't usually give advice, but you really should listen to me this time. Before you start planning a wedding, talk to Akane. It will likely save you a lot of grief."

"Very well, I will speak to my love." He responded. A thought seemed to occur to him. "What of the rumor I've heard that the pigtailed girl was traveling in the company of the aged pervert, Happosai. Saotome has told me that the pigtailed one is in town, healthy and free of any imprisonment. If that is true, it would seem to mean the ancient lecher did not flee with her."

Inwardly the mercenary girl chuckled. "_Easy money_," she thought. Out loud she said, "10,000 yen," and held out her hand again. She figured that this wasn't as big a revelation as the breaking of the engagement, so she wouldn't charge as much.

The young man grumbled but paid. When the money was stashed, Nabiki said, "The rumor was true. The pigtailed girl went to China with Happosai. However, nothing perverted happened."

Frowning, Kuno shook his head. "From what I know of the man, I find that difficult to credit."

Nabiki nodded. "Normally I would agree with you. This time it turns out the old man was sick. His age was catching up with him; after all he was over 300. He was going in search of a place he had been to many years ago, planning for the ending of his days. The man known Happosai is no more. Following the old man's end, the pigtailed girl has returned back to Japan and Nerima." Nabiki was quite pleased with her phrasing. What she had said was completely true, but also completely misleading.

The kendo champion stood still as he digested this. Finally he said, "I know that it is considered to be in poor taste to speak ill of the dead, but I feel certain that many women and even some men will rejoice at this news. I know I can claim no sadness on hearing it. That ancient lecher was a thorn in the side to many and friend to none that I have ever heard."

He paused. "So you are saying that the pigtailed goddess accompanied even such a man as that to his final end?" He shook his head in wonder. "Such nobility! Surely she is a woman worthy of the mighty Blue Thunder."

Nabiki rolled her eyes.

The kendo champion wore a manic grin. "Thank you, mercenary one. The information you have provided today is most welcome. I must think on this as I devise the best way to take advantage of it."

As Kuno walked away, Nabiki shook her head. She muttered to herself, "Sometimes I think his grip on reality is getting weaker. (Maybe too many hits to the head.) I guess I'd better warn Akane. Man, I hate giving out free info."

The rest of the day went by quickly. Ranma and Akane were in the same class, but they didn't talk to each other. It wasn't that they were angry with each other at this point; it was just that they didn't know how to act toward each other now that the engagement was off. Nabiki had given her warning, so Akane was prepared for the escalation in Kuno's attentions. The wall around the schoolyard gained some new Kuno-shaped indentations.

After school let out for the day Ranma found Noriko was waiting for him at the front gate. What surprised him was when she greeted him with a hug. As pleasant as it was, he wasn't sure this was the right place for it. When they disengaged he stepped back and asked, "What was that for?"

With a grin, the blonde explained, "You have been doing well in the 'training,' and I thought it would be nice to see how you handled it in public. Besides I'm trying to practice being more feminine by showing my emotions."

Ranma shook his head. "From changing back and forth myself I know that men are just as emotional as women. They may not be emotional about the same things, but the emotions are just as strong. The major difference I've noticed is that men in general seem to hide their emotions more. Well, not counting Nabiki and her Ice Queen thing."

Noriko laughed heartily at that. "I know why you qualified that by saying 'in general.'"

Ranma nodded. "Mr. Tendo."

The blonde girl shook her head. "If he were any worse, he'd probably cry over it being a nice day. I sometimes wonder why he hasn't been taken to the hospital for dehydration."

The pigtailed boy laughed as well. "Didn't you notice? He drinks lots of water and Kasumi's always serving him tea."

Still smiling, the former man nodded. "That would do it."

"Anyway," Ranma said, trying to get back to the subject. "I appreciate a hug from a pretty girl as much as anyone, but... maybe you should save it for someplace more private?"

Grinning wider, Noriko challenged, "Are you afraid I'll embarrass you in front of your schoolmates?" 

"Well… yeah, kind of," he admitted. "They probably think I dumped Akane for a new girlfriend." 

"Traded up, you mean?" She continued to grin mischievously.

With a little effort he extracted his arm from her grip. "Now you're just being silly. You know you're pretty. Why do you need me to tell you?"

Noriko explained, "I've noticed this in women. No matter how pretty they are or how well they know it, they enjoy being complimented on their looks as long as it isn't too extreme like Kuno does it."

Ranma took that as a reminder. "Speaking of him, did you have a chance to talk to the Amazons about the powder?"

Noriko's grin was back. "Yes. We can stop by the Nekohanten to pick up a few packets. Now all we need to spring the trap is a private place to hit Kuno with the cursed water."

"Sounds good," Ranma agreed. "If we ask Kuno, I've got a pretty good idea where he would suggest. I can suggest it if he doesn't."

The blonde's expression became more serious. "I called Atchika to let her know we would be settling into the new place and doing other things today. I'm wondering if it would have been smarter to have moved to Juuban. It's a fairly long commute to go there for your magic lessons."

The pigtailed boy frowned for a moment then pointed out, "Then it would be a commute to Furinkan."

As they walked down the street, Noriko responded, "I was thinking more along the line of you transferring to a Juuban school too. There would be the bonus of being away from all of the craziness of the people at Furinkan."

Ranma let out a sigh. "The way my luck runs, I'd probably meet a whole new bunch of crazies, like maybe the Senshi and their friends. I seem to attract people like that. Considering how much I've missed, I think it might be a good idea to stick here at least until the end of the school year. After that we can think about moving again."

The blonde nodded. "That seems reasonable. That still doesn't address the problem of travel time between here and Juuban. Other than taking the train, I see two alternatives. You could learn to drive a car or have Atchika teach you a teleportation spell. Of the options, the teleportation spell would be fastest."

Ranma glanced around. He decided they were far enough away from the school and changed to girl form. Then she stopped and closed her eyes and after a few moments was wearing a navy blue knee length skirt and pale yellow short-sleeved blouse.

Noriko clapped her hands then impulsively threw her arms around her companion in another hug. Ranma submitted to the embrace but didn't return it. After a moment Noriko stepped back and said, "You're getting better at the clothing swap spell."

The redhead shrugged. "I still need more practice before I can do it at the same time as the sex change."

"You'll get it," Encouraged Noriko.

A short while later they arrived at the Nekohanten. Cologne met them and handed over the sealed foil packets. Shampoo was out on a delivery. The elder said, "So you are planning to use these to demonstrate to young Kuno about Jusenkyo curses?"

Ranma nodded. "He seems able to deny it when it's happening to someone else, even if it's right in front of him. Maybe when it happens to him, the truth will finally penetrate into that granite-hard head of his."

The old woman frowned. She advised, "Be careful how you handle this. You might be able to use this to get through to the young man, but it could backfire on you." 

"Backfire how? Ranma asked.

She warned, "This could confirm yourself forever in the role of 'foul sorcerer' in his mind. If he comes to believe your female form is a sorceress as he thinks of your male form, you could be making life even more difficult for yourself."

The redhead spread her hands out in a helpless gesture. "It's either this or try to convince him that Ranko is Ranma's sister. The trouble I see with that is that he would eventually ask to see both of us together. There are risks in whatever we might do."

The Elder shrugged her shoulders. "That much is certainly true."

As they walked away from the cafe Ranma asked, "So how are we going to do this?"

"I was thinking that when we mix up the water we can put it in a balloon," Noriko answered. "You've had enough water balloons thrown at you to know how those work. If the water inside is instant girl water and we hit Kuno with it, that should be all we need."

"Where can we do this?" the red haired girl wondered. "We can't just do it out in the school yard and I don't like the idea of going to the Kuno mansion. That's their home turf after all."

The blonde nodded and said, "I have some ideas on that. Tell me, if you were to ask Kuno for a place to talk that was private, where do you think he would suggest?"

The younger girl thought for a moment and then said, "I think I know."

"The packet makes a little too much water to fit in one balloon. I can put it into two balloons and keep them in stuff space," Noriko said. "Then we just need for Kuno to turn his back on me. I figure you can distract him. I can pull the balloons out of stuff space and tag him when he's not looking."

"Wouldn't it be a problem if one of us gets splashed with the water?" Ranma wanted to know.

Noriko grinned. "No problem at all. I'm a girl now so it won't have any effect on me. Since you already turn into a girl it won't work on you either."

"If you're sure."

Noriko patted Ranma's shoulder in a reassuring way. "I checked with Atchika. You could bathe in the stuff now or even in the Nyniichuan spring itself and it wouldn't do anything to you."

Their plans made, they roof hopped to the apartment. The building was six stories tall. Each of the apartments had a balcony with a sliding glass door that opened out onto it. Their apartment was on the second floor. They went to an interior hallway with a stairway leading up. As they stopped near the mailboxes, Ranma commented, "I recognize this building. It's where Ms. Hinako lives."

"Yes, I know," answered the blonde. "I didn't know I owned the building where Ms. Hinako lived until I came to look at the place. I don't think it will be a problem. Since you promised to help her, I think she likes you."

Author's Note: There has been a re-write on this from when it was posted on Media Miner. I've simplified the plan to get Kuno to accept Ranma's sex-changing.

For future chapters: Ranma wants to cure Hinako. The concept I have is that learning the ki drain technique did save her life from a deadly disease, but didn't cure it. Draining someone repairs the damage done by the disease but when she reverts to child form, it starts doing new damage. If she were to go a full year without draining anyone, she would die.

I would prefer to have her suffering from a real disease that is resistant to treatment by conventional medicine and needs magic to cure. UNSpacy000 has suggested that she have lupus and I have thought of leukemia. I would welcome suggestions for a rare disease that Hinako could be cured of by magic. If my readers think it is a bad idea to use a real disease, I could invent a disease and call it some kind of syndrome but I would prefer a real disease. Would anyone out there like to volunteer to have a disease named after them?

I am also looking for a name for Noriko's new school of martial arts. The perverted techniques have been removed but the "Anything Goes" name has a bad reputation. Any suggestions for a new name?

Thanks to UNSpacy000 for beta reading this.


	20. Chapter 20 A Trap Is Sprung

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 18

A Trap Is Sprung

Noriko handed Ranma a key ring. Holding up each of the keys in turn, she said, "This one is to get into the building and this one is for the front door of the apartment. This is for the mailbox and this other key is for the storage area down in the basement." She tapped a finger on the brass door of the mailbox and said, "This is our mailbox. Since this is our first day here, there shouldn't be anything in there.

At that moment they could hear the sound of a key in the exterior door and they turned to see Ms. Hinako walking in. The child-sized teacher paused when she saw the two of them and asked, "Noriko, Ranma? Did you come to visit again?"

Ranma shook her head. "Nah, we rented an apartment in this building. We're on the second floor."

The little girl seemed to think about that as she grabbed a folded step-stool and opened it. As she set it next to the mailboxes she asked, "We? Are the two of you sharing an apartment?"

Ranma watched as the little girl climbed on the stool and produced a key to open a mailbox that she wouldn't have been able to reach without the stool. She pulled out a magazine and a handful of envelopes, then closed the box and extracted her key.

Noriko said, "Yes, we're going to share an apartment, for now."

The little ki-vampire considered this before she nodded. "You must have taken that vacant 3 bedroom on the 2nd floor. I wondered what would happen to you after I heard about the engagement with Akane being over."

"Yeah," Ranma agreed. "Mr. Tendo kicked me out. I sort of expected it."

"I can't believe Soun would be such a meany," Hinako grumbled. She folded the step stool and leaned it against the wall again. "I used to think he was a really nice man."

Ranma shrugged and explained, "I can understand his reasons. After all there are practical considerations as well. Because of all the calories I burn and my ki reserves, I eat a lot. Then there's the damage from all of the fiancées and rivals fighting over me or against me. It's one thing for him to put up with the big food and repair bills when he thought I was going to be a part of the family, but something else if I start to look like just a freeloader."

Hinako looked troubled as she sorted through the envelopes. "_Were_ you freeloading?"

With a shake of her head, Ranma replied, "I helped out where I could. I helped with cooking, cleaning and repaired most of the damage that was caused by my fights. I let Nabiki take pictures of my girl side so she could sell them."

After she had tossed two of the envelopes that contained junk mail into a trashcan, the little teacher asked, "You _let_ Nabiki take pictures of you?"

"I could have stopped her if I really wanted to," the redhead explained. "Even as deep as I usually sleep, I will still wake up if someone pours cold water on me while I'm in bed. I just let Nabiki think I was still sleeping when she did that."

"So you let her think she was taking advantage of you, even when you were actually allowing it?" the little girl mused.

"Yeah, I knew she was doing it to try and keep a roof over everybody's head," Ranma agreed. "One of the things that always bothered me about it was that she just went ahead and did it. If she had just _asked _me to pose, I would have done it and I think the pictures would have been better."

Nodding the little teacher said, "Well, it will be nice having you as neighbors. If you ever need help with your schoolwork you can come to me and I'll be glad to give what help I can. You know where I live."

She turned and headed toward the elevator at the far end of the hallway. In the time they had been standing there chatting another woman had come in from the street. The woman was brown haired and a little shorter than Noriko.

She said, "I overheard your conversation. Are you a student of Ninomiya-san's?" She paused and added, "Such a strange girl." She frowned and shuddered slightly in apparent distaste.

"Yeah," Ranma answered, for the moment ignoring the woman's apparent poor opinion of Ms. Hinako. "She's my English teacher at Furinkan. I'm Saotome Ranma and this is my... friend, Tendo Noriko." She wasn't too sure if she liked the woman if that was her attitude toward her teacher and friend.

"I'm Nakashima Midori," the woman introduced herself. "I live on the fifth floor. My goodness, that is a most striking shade of red you have in your hair. Where do you get that color done, Miss Saotome?"

"Uh, it's not a dye job," Ranma admitted. "My hair is naturally this color."

"Really?" The woman seemed to think about that for a moment. "How very unusual. Your family must have some gaijin blood somewhere in the past. I've never heard of any natural redheads of purely Japanese decent. I can't say I've met too many Japanese blondes either. Is your hair naturally that color, Ms. Tendo?"

Maintaining a pleasant expression with some difficulty, Noriko responded, "Yes, it is. I believe there may have been some gaijin blood in my ancestry. It would be so long ago that I can't really be sure." She didn't bother to mention that her grandmother had been a Niuchiezu Amazon woman from China.

Ranma shrugged and replied, "Could be. I know I haven't looked that deeply into my ancestry. I do know that my mother is a redhead too. Oh, by the way, you may see my brother drop by from time to time. He's taller than me and has black hair that he wears in a pigtail like I do. His name is Ranma too. Well, nice meeting you Ms. Nakashima, but we've got to get going."

The two girls left the neighbor woman and headed toward the stairs. Shortly they were at the door of their apartment. Noriko unlocked and then opened the door and walked in.

Before she came in the door Ranma asked, "What was that about gaijin in your ancestry?"

"Oh, that," responded the blonde. "My grandmother on my mother's side was a blonde. I believe she may have been an Amazon from Joketsuzoku, but I can't be sure. She never spoke much about her past."

With a frown, Ranma looked back toward the stairs and commented, "I wonder if that woman realizes how offensive she was being." Noriko shrugged.

Ranma entered into the living room and looked around. It wasn't large, but it looked big enough for the two residents and as many as two guests to sit comfortably, more with crowding. There was a couch and chair, some end tables and lamps along with a TV that sat in a cabinet along with a stereo and a DVD player. Noticing the player, Ranma asked, "Do you have any DVD's?"

The blonde shrugged. "No, not yet. I thought about picking up some Hong Kong kung fu movies, but I was running a little short of time. I didn't know your taste in music so I didn't buy any CD's either. If you like we can go shopping for some of both later." Ranma cringed at the mention of shopping.

Noriko pointed and said, "The kitchen is through that door there. The bathroom is the first door on the right down the hall. The toilet is just past that. Your bedroom is through the door on the left at the end of the hall, my bedroom is on the right and our common study/library/office is the door in the middle at the end of the hall. The sliding door out to the balcony is in the middle bedroom."

She continued, "Since we're both used to sleeping on futons that's what I got for both of us. If you ever decide you'd prefer a bed, we can swap out for one of those later. The boxes with your clothes are in your room along with your pack and your clothes out of the suitcase we brought from China. I put the empty suitcases in the storage room in the basement."

She glanced down the hall then went on, "In the study we each have a desk with a computer. I have a bookcase for my books and there is another one for yours. I know you don't have many books yet, but if you're going into the medical field, you will probably get lots of them. There's a phone in the kitchen, and one in each of the bedrooms. The computers are on a high-speed data hookup."

The blonde got a sheepish expression on her face. "I really don't know anything about computers. I just got the set up that the lady at the company recommended. I could probably figure out how to turn one on, but that's about my limit. I know you're still learning about them yourself, but you can teach me what you know."

Ranma frowned. "Now that I'm not living with the Tendos anymore, I probably won't be able to get any more computer lessons from Nabiki. I guess I've learned the basics; so that should be enough to teach myself from now on. With magic lessons, school work, martial arts training, computer study and catching up on all I missed, I'm not going to have a lot of free time."

Noriko laughed at that. "If you don't think you have much free time now, wait until you get into medical school. I've not been there myself, but I've heard about it. Your time will be pretty much filled up."

For a moment Ranma considered that with dismay. Then she smirked and said, "Well, you know me. I can't resist a challenge."

The blonde rolled her eyes and said, "True. I do think there's some challenges you should have passed on. Those would include the martial arts dining, martial arts cheerleading and some of the other forms. Although you did look really cute in your cheerleader outfit."

The redhead was about to protest the compliment when she stopped for a moment. "I guess if I'm going to be stuck changing into a girl for the rest of my life I need to get used to it. So, yeah, I did look good in that outfit. I still wish I was taller."

Noriko pointed out, "That _is_ why you planned to spend all of your time outside of school as a girl."

That comment brought a new thought to mind and Ranma frowned as she considered it. "If some of the things I've heard about medical school, internship and residency are true, maybe I'll have to figure out a way to do those in female form. I mean I wouldn't want to change in the middle of a work shift and I've heard that interns and residents work some _long_ shifts."

The blonde's eyes widened as if considering that for the first time. "You do have a point. I think you might want to consider attending college and medical school as a woman. For high school, you'd better keep doing what you originally planned."

The redhead shook her head. "I guess I have some time to think about it."

The former man advised, "Go to your room and put your stuff away. I didn't do that for you because I figured you may have some way you want to organize it. While you're doing that, I'll make dinner."

"You can cook?" Ranma was surprised.

"Of course I can cook," Noriko retorted. "Anyone who travels around and lives off the land has to be able to feed themselves. It won't be up to Kasumi's standards, but I think you'll find it worth eating."

The redhead nodded and went to her room. There was a tatami mat on the floor and a futon in the center of the room. A closet opened out of the wall closest to the kitchen. There was a chest of drawers as well as a table and a chair. It was actually a little larger than the guest room at the Tendo home. This would do nicely.

She emptied her pack and put the contents in drawers or hung them on hangars that had been thoughtfully provided. The camping gear was left in the pack and then she set it on the floor of the closet. The clothes from the suitcase had been left in a pile on the futon. She took those and put them away in drawers or the closet as appropriate. She devoted a little more thought to the items from the boxes as she did want to organize them at least a little. Likely she would come up with some new organizational plan later.

When she had things arranged as she wanted, Ranma left the bedroom and went to the study. The room was arranged in an exact mirror reflection. Both sides had bookcases, a desk and chair, a computer on the desk and a lamp on the desk. The bookcases on the right side of the room had books in them, so Ranma assumed the computer and other stuff on the left side was intended to be hers. That matched up with the arrangement of the bedrooms.

Between the desks there was a sliding glass door that opened out onto the balcony. There were curtains that could be drawn to cover the door.

She sat down and turned on the computer that was on the left side of the room. She took a few minutes to get familiar with the system, then logged into the internet and to the email server. There was an email from Po Shen telling about how Lo Shen had called the Joketsuzoku and wanting to know how things had turned out.

Giving it a little bit of thought, Ranma sent back a reply to say what had happened with Cologne. Next she told of being kicked out of the Tendo house but not the Saotome family. She then explained that she and Noriko were now sharing an apartment. She would be able to stay in Japan and work toward a career as a doctor. She included her new postal mailing address. The email address wasn't changed.

Just as she clicked "Send," Noriko's voice called out, "Dinner's ready."

When Ranma came to the table, she was surprised when Noriko gave her a hug. It was pleasant, but she asked, "What was that for?" 

She shrugged and said, "I just felt like it because you look so cute."

The redhead rolled her eyes but didn't argue the point. To be honest she rather liked the hug. She thought back to a conversation she had with Noriko one night after they had gone to bed in Elder Lo Shen's house.

Flashback

Noriko had asked, "Ranma, when you were on your training trip, did Genma ever shake your hand, or pat you on the back to congratulate you for something you did well?"

"Nah, he never did anything like that," was the answer. "He never said so, but I believe he thought that kind of stuff was unmanly."

"Did he ever hug you?" Noriko asked.

"Never!" The red haired girl responded. "That would have been _very_ unmanly, close to girly. He'd never do anything like that."

The blonde considered that. "So your father never touched you except to hit you?"

"Well…" Ranma hesitated a moment, considering it. "He did help me to my feet sometimes after knocking me down. If I was hurt enough that I couldn't walk, he'd pick me up and carry me or let me lean on him. But other than that, yeah, I guess hitting me was the only time he ever touched me."

The former man next asked, "Does your mother hug you?"

Ranma frowned and thought a bit. "I think the only times she hugged me was when I was in girl form. That's funny now that I think about it. She used to hug me a lot when I was a little kid before the training trip. I don't know, maybe she thinks hugging my guy form now is unmanly."

"I see," Noriko said in a thoughtful tone.

"Uh… Noriko, I get the feeling you're going somewhere with this," Ranma said in a slightly worried tone. "Why are you asking all of these questions about touching?"

"I'm trying to figure out something about the way you are, how you act," She replied. "I know what my part in that has been in the past. About the only times I ever touched you was to hit you or to fondle your assets."

She paused. "The way you described the situation with the fiancés was if you were ever discovered touching or being touched by one of them, the rest would attack you or at least yell at you."

Ranma responded. "Yeah, that's pretty much it."

There was the sound of a sigh in the darkened room. Noriko said, "I guess that explains why you either cringe or brace yourself any time a girl touches you. You're preparing to be punished for letting someone touch you."

"Hmm." Ranma hadn't thought of this before. She said, "You may be right, even if some of those times I didn't exactly _let_ them touch me."

"It sounds to me like you've had a kind of aversion therapy," The older woman said.

Sounding confused, Ranma asked, "What's 'aversion therapy?'"

The blonde answered, "I once read an article about it. It is usually used to break people of bad habits like smoking, for instance. In its most basic form you do something unpleasant to a person anytime they do the habit you're trying to break. Eventually the bad habit and the unpleasantness become linked in the subject's mind and they start avoiding the bad habit. The problem is that it works for other things besides bad habits."

"What kinds of other things?"

Noriko explained, "In that same article I've read of experiments where a person was wired up and then shown pictures of different kinds of food. When a specific one of that person's favorites was shown, the subject was given an electric shock. After doing that for a while the subject started to hate that one food."

The red haired girl was appalled. "That's terrible."

"Yes it is," agreed Noriko. "What happened to you is that you have been trained to avoid touching people or letting yourself be touched. You associate such touches with pain or the unpleasantness of people yelling at you. The result is that when someone does touch you, you brace yourself to be hit."

"Is that likely to be a problem?" Ranma asked.

The blonde thought about it for a while. "I've known people who don't like to be touched before. The problem is that even if you don't get married to one of the current crop of fiancées, you will someday meet a girl you like or even love. That girl (or woman) will expect you to touch her, hug her, even kiss her. If the relationship goes far enough, such as marriage, you should expect to have sex with her. That's never going to happen if you are afraid to touch her or be touched by her."

Now concerned, Ranma asked, "What can I do?"

"I want to propose something," She said. "Given my past, I will understand if you don't want to go along with it. What I'm suggesting is that you let me touch you." 

"What!" She was alarmed by the suggestion. Let the most perverted man (person?) in Japan touch her, _willingly_?

"No, hear me out," begged Noriko. When there was silence from the other bed the older woman continued, "I'm not suggesting anything perverted. I was thinking that at times when it seems appropriate to the moment I could touch your hand, pat your shoulder or back or even give you a hug – not a glomp."

The redhead grudgingly admitted, "Well, that doesn't sound _too_ bad."

"There is more to it than just that."

Ranma asked, "What else?"

The older woman explained, "If we stay together long enough, you should eventually get to the point where you can tolerate my touch without bracing for being hit. When you have improved to that point then you would have to start touching me in the same ways and places. Can you do that?"

"I... guess so."

"Good. We'll start tomorrow. We'll start small and just touch hands to begin with," Noriko said.

"Ok, that sounds reasonable," Ranma responded.

Noriko nodded. She thought, "_If this works and she and he gets used to touching and hugging, it's not too far to snuggling. From there kissing isn't too much of a leap. From there_…" She was glad of the darkness so Ranma couldn't see her blush.

End Flashback

As promised the food was simple, but plentiful. It tasted good, if not exceptional. Ranma compliment the cook as it seemed the polite thing to do. She reflected that she would have to take a turn at the cooking.

Ranma helped with the dishes, which earned her another hug. She was getting to the point where she didn't brace for an attack right after being on the receiving end of one of Noriko's hugs. The nice thing about it was that the hugs were gentle, not an athletic glomp like the ones she got from Shampoo. She was learning to enjoy being hugged.

After dinner clean up was finished, Ranma went to the study to work on her make-up homework. She put the books she'd got from the Spell Book into her bookcase and the books from school. She reminded herself, "_Treat this like a martial arts challenge. The books are my opponents and I have to learn about them if I'm going to beat them_."

Sometime during Ranma's study session Noriko came in to get a book from her bookcase but she did so quietly and didn't disturb her roommate's study. If the redhead was not so focused on her study she might have noticed the sound of the TV in the living room some time later.

It was quite a bit later when Ranma felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked into Noriko's eyes. The blonde girl said, "Ranma, it's getting late. If you want to spar in the morning before going to school, you should go to bed and get some sleep."

The younger girl looked at the clock for the first time that night and realized how late it was. There was really no time for a bath so she would have to grab a quick bath in the morning after their sparring session.

The next morning the character of the sparring was quite different than it had been with her father. For one thing, Ranma wasn't thrown out a window. For another, Noriko fought like she actually respected her opponent. On top of that the blonde woman was far more skilled than Genma. Ranma had been able to kick her father's butt for a long time. Sparring with Noriko however, was actually a test of her skills.

When they finished sparring they shared the bath. In the past this would also have been a source of trouble. If Akane had known Ranma was sharing a bath with a woman, she would have brought out the mallet. Now that they had their own apartment, nobody else knew what went on because it was none of their business. Ranma had gotten used to sharing a bath with Noriko during the time at Lo Shen's house.

Noriko knew how fragile Ranma's state of mind was in this regard. She was careful not to abuse the situation. When the two of them were in the tub she didn't touch Ranma, other than on the hand. Conversation was kept light and pertaining to things like school, the food for breakfast and the like. Noriko made no comments about Ranma's body, other than to say she was looking good. She didn't stare or leer. In fact Noriko treated the two of them sitting naked in the furo the same as if they were sitting fully clothed in the living room.

After breakfast they both went their separate ways. Ranma to school, Noriko was off to the real estate company. On his way out from the apartment, Ranma met Ms. Hinako out in front and the two of them walked to school together.

Noriko had two tasks to accomplish that day. One was to investigate the possibilities of getting Nabiki a job as an intern and the other to see if her land holdings included any dojos. If there were no places that were specifically set up as training halls, then she would look for a building that could be converted to that purpose.

A thought occurred to her. If Nabiki was working for her, that meant she would devoting less time to managing the finances of the Tendo family. Soun was hopeless when it came to managing money. It might be a smart idea to have the real estate management company to be on the lookout for the Tendo property coming up for sale in the next few months. If that were to happen, Noriko would be sure to buy it.

At Furinkan, the word on the breakup between Ranma and Akane was making the rounds. It could be seen that Akane arrived separately from Ranma, so it was possible that the rumors were true. Kuno had not yet had time to organize the Horde of Hentai but he was there right on time to declare his love for Akane.

"Ahem!" The sound of someone noisily clearing their throat interrupted Kuno's rant. The kendo champion looked to see Ranma standing a short distance away. The delusional kendoist scowled and ordered, "Begone, foul sorcerer. Tendo Akane is no longer your concern."

Ranma inclined his head in a slight bow to Akane before saying, "Yes, you're right. I'm sorry for interrupting, but I wanted to mention that I now have the information that I spoke of yesterday. If you want to learn the full truth about the pigtailed girl, we need to talk after school."

The kendo champion took on an expression of confusion. He had been expecting an argument. After a moment he said, "Oh, yes. You had said something about that before."

Ranma bowed to Kuno then bowed to Akane. Out loud he said, "My apologies for this intrusion." When his face was close to Akane's he quietly said, "Kick this idiot's butt." 

Akane had used the distraction to summon her mallet. Shortly Kuno was disappearing into the distance.

Dispersing her mallet, the dark haired girl asked, "'Full truth about the pigtailed girl?' What's that about?"

The pigtailed boy gave his trademark smirk. "Just a plan to get him to finally understand that _I'm_ the pigtailed girl. It involves the use of Instant Nyaniichuan."

Akane's eyes went wide for a moment then she laughed. "So you're going to give him a taste of the same curse. Well, that's got to have a better chance of working than just telling him or changing in front of him. It will be a lot harder for him to deny a pair of breasts on his own chest."

Ranma nodded. "That's what I thought. Well, see you in class."

As he walked away, Akane held up a hand as if to stop him. She put the hand back down and reflected on the fact that he wasn't her fiancé any more. He didn't even still live in the same house. He was now just someone she knew from school.

At school that day, Ranma was harassed by some boys he called the "pervert squad". This was a group of boys who seemed to want to get a wet T-shirt view of Ranma's girl form. Their method of achieving that was by throwing water balloons at the martial artist. Today they were having no luck at all in achieving their goal. Each time the pigtailed boy seemed to sense the attack and dodge out of the way.

Some of the water balloons that missed Ranma struck other female students who were extremely unhappy. The boys of the pervert squad were forced to run to avoid righteous female retribution.

Ranma turned in his homework to the shock of some of the teachers. They had tried to load the boy up with an impossible amount of work the previous day. They gave him a similar load of work to do for the next day.

The day seemed to pass in a blur. In gym class Ranma did as well as usual. He did hold back to avoid outshining his classmates too badly.

After school Ranma went to stand out in the schoolyard. Shortly after he had done so he was joined by Noriko. She commented, "I talked to the property management company about Nabiki. They have agreed to interview her for a position."

She glanced around to see if anyone was close enough to overhear. When she was satisfied, she said, "I've got the water balloons ready." She passed one of them to Ranma who stashed it in stuff space.

Ranma shook his head. "I don't know how well Nabiki'll take the change from being the boss of her own little empire to being a low level flunky."

Noriko shrugged. "It will be a learning experience for her. I think she will do fine."

The two of them stood for some time, waiting. The other students that were there passed by, giving odd looks at the blonde haired woman standing with Ranma. The universal questions on their minds were 'who is this woman?' and 'had she replaced Akane in Ranma's life?' For that matter where was Akane? Normally Ranma hanging out with a new girl was grounds for a flight on Mallet Air. A few guys couldn't help feeling envy over the hottie Ranma seemed to have hooked up with.

They had been waiting for a while when Kuno finally showed up. He had locked his attention on the boy and demanded, "You have claimed to have information on the pigtailed goddess. Pray tell what it is that you might wish to disclose."

Before Ranma could answer, Kuno's eyes finally took in the sight of the beautiful blonde standing next to his hated rival. He rushed forward and grasped her hand, saying, "And who is this vision of loveliness? But is not the custom to give one's own name first? I am the rising star of the High school Kendo world..."

Having heard the rant before, Noriko tuned it out. When the boy finished she said, "I am Tendo Noriko, a distant cousin of the Tendos here in Nerima. I really think you should get over yourself."

"Get...?"

Ranma interrupted, "Kuno, you are meeting with us for a reason."

"Us?" the delusional kendoist echoed. "So the foul sorcerer has ensnared yet another beautiful woman in his thrall. Know that I will not permit..."

Did this guy love the sound of his own voice or what? "SHUT UP!" Noriko shouted.

Momentarily shaken out of another rant, the Kendo champion looked at the blonde.

"I am not some kind of magically mind-controlled love slave," Noriko stated. "As Ranma said, you have come here to meet with us for a reason. He has information for you about the pigtailed girl. Do you want to hear it or not?"

"But..."

"We can talk about other things after you have received your information," Noriko promised. "Many things will be made clear. The information Ranma wishes to tell you should be given in private and in a place where we will not be interrupted."

"A private place?"

Kuno gained an expression of extreme concentration which caused Ranma to lean over and whisper, "Do you smell something burning?"

The blonde woman had to suppress a snicker.

At that moment Kuno said, "The principal's office in the basement! He is in Hawaii at the present. We could use the space without interruption."

Frowning, Ranma asked, "Isn't that place full of booby traps?"

"True, but worry not, for fortune smiles upon us," proclaimed the samurai wannabe. "The safe path through the traps is known to me. Come, follow in my footsteps."

Ranma looked at Noriko. The blonde shrugged. In truth she had expected this and had planned for it.

They re-entered the school and followed the kendo champion. Ranma knew where the entrance to the miniature jungle was located. He had been there during the incident with the cocoanut that had contained the freedom from rules certificate.

It was with some surprise that Ranma saw Kuno produce a key to the door that led to the basement. He unlocked the door and said, "Come, the privacy you seek lies within. None will interrupt us in here."

The stairs went down a long way. Shortly they arrived at a door at the bottom of the stairs and Kuno had the key for that as well. After he opened the door he stepped over to side and started flipping switches. Overhead floodlights came to life, illuminating an artificial jungle.

Ranma had been here before but Noriko hadn't. She looked around and thought about how much it must have cost to build this. The chamber appeared to be three stories tall and comprised an area almost equal to the whole school. The jungle that filled the space looked like it would have been at home on any tropical island.

Kuno went to the right in the space between the outer wall and the trees. After he had gone about twenty feet he turned to the left and followed a path. Apparently this was the safe path he had spoken of. Ranma had to wonder how often the kendo champion had come down here in the absence of the principal.

After they had followed Kuno for a while, the kendoist turned and said, "The clearing up ahead should be adequate for our needs. There are places to sit there and you may impart the information that you wish to give me. I am eager to learn all that I may about my love, the pigtailed goddess."

He then turned and led the way to the clearing. While he was preoccupied, he didn't notice both Ranma and Noriko pulling water balloons from their stuff space. When Kuno was just a few steps into the clearing they threw their balloons.

Author's Note: Ok, the trap is sprung. To find out how Kuno reacts to being turned into a girl, check out the next chapter.

Thanks to UNSpacy000 for beta reading this chapter.


	21. Chapter 21 The End of a Delusion

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 19

The End of a Delusion

In the basement of Furinkan High School three people walked through an artificial jungle that had been created for the principal and headmaster of the school. The man had an unhealthy fascination for anything relating to the Hawaiian Islands. In the lead of the group was a young man named Kuno Tatewaki, the son of the principal. Young Kuno was dressed in a kendo uniform.

Following along behind him was a 17 year old young man with black hair in a braided pigtail and a woman with honey blonde hair than hung to her shoulders. The girl looked to be about 19 or 20 years old and was dressed in a pale blue, Chinese style dress.

The area they were walking into was designed to look like a clearing in the jungle with logs positioned around the area to provide areas to sit on. The tops of the logs were carved off to make flat spots like benches.

The young man in the lead had used a key that his father didn't know about to bring two other people to a place of privacy. He was certain that they would not be disturbed here and they would not be interrupted. Because he was paying attention to what was in front of him he didn't see the boy and the girl behind him produce water balloons seemingly out of nowhere and throw them at him.

Kuno was surprised when he felt something hitting his head with a splash. In fact it was two objects that struck and burst open. As the water soaked his hair and dripped down to start soaking into his clothing an odd tingling went through him. Outraged by this, Kuno ignored the tingling. He had to express his rage.

Kuno whirled to face those who followed and pulled out a bokken, demanding, "What manner of cowardly attack is this? You will not catch the mighty Blue Thunder unprepared! I will fight…" Trailing off, the figure in the kendo uniform placed a hand on her throat. Now speaking in a pleasant soprano, the kendo champion demanded, "What happened to my voice?"

Saotome Ranma, a young man about a year younger than Kuno, pointed and suggested, "Look at your chest, Kuno."

The kendoist's eyes narrowed. "This is a trick to get me to lower my guard. Know that your trickery will avail you nothing. I am ready for your attacks."

The pigtailed young man held his hands up and said, "No trick and no attack. You really need to look at your chest."

The kendo champion flicked her eyes down for a moment then quickly brought them back up. Then her eyes went wide and she looked down again to take in the swelling bosom there, nicely filling out the top of the kendo uniform. She had been too preoccupied with her defensive stance to have noticed the sensation of her breasts being squeezed between her upper arms when she had brandished her wooden sword in a two-handed grip. The bokken now clattered to the ground, fallen from nerveless fingers.

Hesitantly, Kuno placed her hands on her breasts and squeezed gently, finding them to be very real and quite sensitive to the touch. Kuno could not deny the testimony of her own senses.

Fearful of what she would find, the new woman reached down and felt at the juncture of her legs through the fabric of her garments. The thing she was hoping to find was missing.

With a wordless scream, the young woman fell to her knees, arms thrust over her head and fists clenched. She then screamed the word, "NO!" After a moment she was enough in control of herself that she shouted, "You have unmanned me! Even worse, you have changed me into a woman."

After a moment her mind tried to move on from that revelation and, as usual, reached the wrong conclusion. Her eyes widened even further before she let out an anguished wail. She managed to choke out "The foul sorcerer Saotome has cast aside the fierce tigress Tendo Akane so that he may turn and enslave _me_ with his foul magic and then plunder my virginal maidenhood!"

Ranma and his companion, Noriko stared at the delusional kendoist in shock and then exchanged a confused look. The young martial artist could only say, "Huh?" Where had the neo-girl gotten that idea from?

The wannabe samurai kept her arms raised and shook her fists as she continued to speak in her overdramatic fashion, "He shall force me and beauteous pigtailed girl to bear an army forth from our loins so he may conquer the world with his dark magics!"

Lowering her arms, she turned from her stare at the ceiling to look at the other two people and spoke, her tone full of venom, "Well rejoice foul one, gloat! After all of your many defeats, you have finally bested the Blue Thunder."

In the face of this insanity, the young Saotome managed to say, "What?"

Kuno turned her gaze to him and said "It is obvious that you must have a limit to the number of maidens that you can enthrall. Why else would you have cast off the fierce tigress Tendo Akane and attempt to add me to your harem in her place?"

"_If that's what she thinks I'm going to do to her, I don't want to know what plans she had for the pigtailed girl if we ever got together,_" Ranma thought. "_Probably a __**really**__ sick fantasy_. _I can see_ _she's still in denial about losing, though._"

Noriko sighed before telling the kendo champion, "This was not a battle. We weren't trying to defeat or enslave you."

The young woman kneeling on the floor let out a bitter laugh. "Well could you claim that it was no battle. Neither of you struck a single blow. What a sad fate it is that Kuno Tatewaki, the mighty Blue Thunder of Furinkan, could be brought low so easily."

Now curious, Noriko asked, "I'm not encouraging you to fight, but I'd like to know why you think you can't fight now?"

Kuno got back to her feet then moved to sit on one of the logs. "Surely it is obvious. In this form I am of shorter stature, giving me shorter reach. My strength will be reduced and you are two to my one."

Ranma was exerting a major effort to control his temper. He thought to himself, "_I must not hit her or shout at her. In her mind it would just prove that all of the crazy nonsense she's spouting is true. Must stick to the plan."_

The neo-girl's expression became defiant. She challenged, "Do what you will to me now, but know this! Someday I will find a way to regain my manhood and on that day I will make you pay for what you have done to me! Mark my words, you will PAY!"

At this pronouncement, Ranma thought, "_Noriko was right, you really do need to get over yourself, Kuno. Your girl form may __**look**__ cute, but the attitude is anything but. Kind of like Akane in that, I guess. It's the personality __**inside**__ the package that makes the difference. Thank the kami Noriko isn't like that_." Out loud he explained in even, controlled tones, "Yes, you will regain your manhood someday. And that day will be tomorrow, maybe even later today."

"Mock me if you will, but…" The kendo champion's rant trailed off. Ranma's words had finally registered. "Wait! What?"

The pigtailed boy had what he hoped was a sympathetic expression on his face. "The effects of the cursed water we splashed you with are not permanent."

"Temporary?" The girl was greatly confused. That didn't fit with any of the scenarios she had imagined her hated foe would enact upon her. "I do not understand. If that is the case then, why did you do this?"

The young Saotome replied, "We needed to get your attention. You have this bad habit of hearing only what you want to hear and then you stop listening, You are so stuck on the idea that I was a foul sorcerer controlling the pigtailed girl with magic that you wouldn't listen to anything else that contradicted that conclusion."

The new girl looked lost. She gestured down at her body and asked, "But how could a transformation such as this be accomplished if not through sorcery?"

"I never said there was no magic involved," Ranma explained. "The thing you have to understand is that I wasn't the person casting the spells. I'm the _victim_ of a magic curse."

"Victim?" the girl in the kendo uniform echoed. Noriko thought that Kuno-chan looked incredibly cute in her confusion.

"Yes, a victim." The pigtailed boy handed a torn open foil packet to Kuno-chan. "This is the source of the magic that caused _you_ to transform."

The auburn haired girl frowned as she examined the packet. "My Mandarin is not as good as I would like." She read, "'Product of the Jusenkyo Products Company. Instant…' I don't recognize this word here. What is this 'Jusenkyo?'"

The young man explained, "That word is 'Nyaniichuan.' In the Bayankala Mountain Range in China, near Mt. Quanjing, there is a valley where 105 springs are or at least were fed from a single source of magic water. There is a curse on all of the springs. If you fall into one of them you 'take the body' of whatever drowned or otherwise died in that spring."

He continued, "The people who sell those packets collect mud and silt from the bottoms of the pools. That mud is full of the magic from the water. They process the mud and turn it into a powder. When mixed with ordinary water it does the kind of thing that happened to you."

Ranma looked around and said, "I assume the principal would have a bathroom down here somewhere. Could you take me there? I believe you should get a look in the mirror to see what you look like as a girl."

Kuno was reluctant to turn her back on Ranma now. Instead she gave directions and let the boy go ahead of her. While she briefly considered directing Saotome into one of the booby traps, she refrained from doing so. She wanted answers. Shortly they reached a structure that looked like a hut but with two doors bearing the international symbols for men's and women's restrooms. Ranma opened the door of the lady's room and turned on the light before stepping aside to let the girl go in.

Kuno looked in the mirror and studied the image that was reflected there. She found that she was now smaller than she had been as a man, perhaps a full hand span or more shorter. Her bosom was not as large as the pigtailed girl's but bigger than Akane's. Her body was lean in its build but looked fit. Her hair was auburn in color and her face… "I'm beautiful." Her face looked like a combination of her male features and those of her sister Kodachi. Or perhaps she looked more like her mother. It was hard to remember her mother's face.

Ranma chuckled and said, "Beautiful? Yes, you are. Please fill one of the paper cups you see in the dispenser beside the sink with cold water, I'll need to show you something in a little while." He thought, "_At least the body and the face are beautiful. It remains to be seen how beautiful the soul inside the body might be_."

Once Kuno had filled a cup as requested, and grabbed a handful of paper towels from another disperser mounted on the wall, she gestured for Ranma to precede her. They went back to the clearing and Kuno sat on one of the logs. She set the cup on the flat topped log beside her and then used the paper towels to dry off as much as she could. She was able to blot up some of the wetness from her clothing, but not all of it.

Maybe the shock of her transformation had unfrozen some of Kuno's brain cells. She was thinking more clearly and asked, "You said a person who falls into a spring takes the body of '_what_ever' died there not '_whom_ever.' Does that mean some of the cursed forms are animals?"

"That's right," Ranma agreed approvingly. "In fact most of them are. My father turns into a panda, the Chinese girl with the purple hair from the ramen restaurant turns into a c-c-cat. I also know a guy who turns into a duck and another one who turns into a little black piglet. What you got is a temporary version of the same curse I have."

"You change into a girl? But you are a man now." The auburn haired girl protested.

"Yes, I am, _now_." The boy explained, "Those with a permanent cursed transformation can temporarily reverse it. Hot water changes the cursed person back to their birth form. Cold water puts you into cursed form. A cursed person magically attracts water so they change back and forth often."

Kuno could feel a chill gripping her spine. She didn't like where this was going but still felt compelled to ask, "What does your cursed form look like?" 

"_Still in denial_," Ranma thought. "You've seen my cursed form before, lots of times. With the knowledge of what just happened to you, I'm going to ask you to think back to something that happened not too long after you and I first met. You handed me a cute dolly because Nabiki told you that was the best way to be sure the pigtailed girl got it. I gave the doll back to you and said, 'If I have my way, you'll never see her again.'"

Kuno-chan nodded. She remembered the situation.

The boy continued, "I walked around a corner and when you followed you found the pigtailed girl. You grabbed her and hugged her. That was when both you and she got splashed by some hot water that Nabiki poured. Do you remember what she said?"

The neo-girl thought back and suddenly recalled the mercenary girl's words. "She said, 'Sorry Ranma, was that too hot'?"

She closed her eyes tightly shut and bowed her head. There had been more words that had followed. Nabiki had told Kuno that the pigtailed girl's body and soul were Ranma's. At the time she had believed that to mean that the boy had enslaved the girl with magic. She didn't think she wanted to hear what came next but couldn't bring herself to tell Ranma to stop.

The boy said, "You didn't let go of your hug but you still found that you were holding me."

"No, you cannot be my love." Kuno obviously didn't want to accept what Ranma was telling her.

Ranma nodded with a frown. He took the cup from the log next to Kuno-chan and moved to where there was a good light shining on him. He judged the distance and then directed, "Keep your eyes on me. Don't just look at my face, but try to take in the shape of my body as it shows through my clothes. The transformation is fast but not instant. If you watch with your full attention you should be able to see most of the changes as they happen."

The auburn haired girl reluctantly sat up on the log and fixed her gaze on the pigtailed boy. She signaled Ranma to proceed when she felt she was ready. She had the sinking feeling that she wasn't going to like what the boy was going to show her.

Saotome threw the contents of the cup into his face. Even though he didn't need the water to transform anymore, he felt a little bit of theatrics were called for to get the message across. He willed the transformation.

Kuno watched intently and in the brief period of time could see Ranma's body shrink, shoulders and waist became narrower as hips became wider at the same time. Handsome, masculine features became more delicate, almost elfin and decidedly feminine in appearance. Hair that was black seemed to turn red a few strands at a time but so fast that it seemed almost instant. From what had been a flat muscular male chest, two generously sized female breasts grew.

Doing a fairly good imitation of a fish, the auburn haired girl's mouth opened and closed. It didn't help her mood when Ranma, in a well remembered soprano voice, proclaimed, "Saotome Ranma hasn't _enslaved_ your 'pigtailed goddess,' he _is_ the pigtailed girl and has been all along."

For once the kendo champion couldn't take refuge in her delusions. Her full attention was focused on Saotome and she had taken in every visible detail of the transformation. Looking decidedly ill, Kuno hesitantly asked, "I have been in love… with a man?"

Ranma shook her head sadly. "I tried to tell you, lots of times. I even showed you, but you refused to believe it. If it makes you feel any better there are guys who know I change sexes and they still ask me for dates."

The kendo champion shook her head, her attitude and expression eloquent of misery. "No, that does not make me feel better." All Ranma's pronouncement did was to confirm that some men were indeed perverts.

The auburn haired girl rested her forehead on her palms for a moment. The news she had been given were a severe blow to her psyche. After a few minutes like that she raised her head and looked around, her gaze stopping on the blonde haired girl. Still afraid of the answer she might be given, Kuno-chan asked. "Pray tell me, oh blonde valkyrie, do you also bear a curse such as Saotome?"

Noriko frowned as she considered the question. "That's an interesting question. I used to be a man myself, but my transformation into a female is permanent. I'm never going to change back into a man with any application of water, either hot or cold. I've tried to make a clean break from the man I was. I've even changed my name. As I told you, I now go by the name Tendo Noriko. I'm not directly related to Tendo Akane and for anyone who asks, I will claim to be a distant cousin from a branch of the family the local Tendos had forgotten about."

The auburn haired girl looked down at the floor for a moment. "Does Tendo Akane have a curse?"

Ranma's eyebrows went up. "No, she doesn't have a curse. Why did you ask?"

The neo-girl breathed a sigh of relief. "I was beginning to worry there was something wrong with me. I thought perhaps I might only feel attracted to women who could change into men or who had been men in the past."

The blonde gave Kuno a searching look. "Well, I suppose I should feel flattered that you found me attractive." She did not add that she truly felt anything but flattered. In this situation, it didn't hurt to be gracious.

Ranma put in, "Now that my engagement to Akane is over, I hope you weren't planning to start that 'you must defeat her to date her' challenge again."

Surprised, Kuno-chan asked, "Why not?"

The redhead rolled her eyes. "Because it was stupid and she hated it! It's mostly because of your treatment of her and the daily fights that Akane doesn't feel like she can trust any man her own age. I don't know if she's there yet, but Akane could become a lesbian because of it. She openly says that she hates boys. I have a pretty strong idea that she was attracted more to my girl side than to my guy side."

The kendo champion looked even more depressed. She said, "Maybe there is no one out there for me. Perhaps I am destined to be alone."

Trying to cheer her up, Ranma told her, "One of your greatest problems is that you focus on just one or two things and ignore everything else. Maybe you should look around. You might find there are some nice girls who like you and have been trying to get your attention."

"I suppose anything is possible," Kuno said in a musing tone. She looked down at herself and the changes wrought by the magic water. She sighed and declared, "I cannot go home like this. Neither my twisted sister nor Sasuke will recognize me. They would either attack me or at least refuse me admission to the mansion."

Somewhat diffidently, Ranma said, "Actually, I was wondering if I could ask a favor of you." 

The kendo champion frowned. In truth, for the trouble she had caused this person, it could be possible that she did owe Ranma a favor. She asked, "What sort of favor did you have in mind?" 

"When I said the temporary curse would wear off in a day, that was the extreme limit," Ranma explained. "You could change back sooner if you get splashed with hot water. You could even change back before we leave this room. The favor is, would you consider waiting a while before you change back?"

"Why would you ask this?" The auburn haired girl wanted to know.

Ranma sighed deeply. She said, "Your sister is a problem for me. She wants to kill my girl side and date or even marry my boy side. If you could tell her what happened to you today and change in front of her, it might help me."

"I… I could try," Kuno didn't sound at all certain.

The redhead nodded. "Thank you. The only other thing we could think to try would be a variation on the trick we did to you. By splashing Kodachi with a different water we could temporarily turn her into a man."

Frowning, Kuno mused, "Considering what a trauma it was to have my own gender transmogrified, I would spare my sister such a shock if possible. I will talk to her before I change back. I can make no promises as to how effective that will be."

"I only ask that you try," Ranma replied. "The whole thing with her started when she misunderstood an act of kindness. She was falling from the roof of the Tendo home and I caught her before she could hit the ground. I would have done the same for anyone. I wasn't declaring my love for her or looking for romance."

Noriko put in, "Ah, that's Ranma for you. Always the hero." She threw her arms around the redhead to deliver a hug.

The red haired girl gave the blonde a glare as if to say, "_You're not helping_."

The kendo champion considered Ranma's words. After a moment she said, "It is true that my sister has received little kind treatment from anyone outside our family and little enough within the family. I could easily understand how she might mistake an act of moral responsibility for a romantic gesture."

She paused before continuing. "Kodachi can be as stubborn as I am when she has chosen something to obsess about. There is the chance that words might not sway her from the course she has charted to your heart. You should stand ready to use your magic water in the event that my words fail to reach her."

Ranma looked at her watch. "Very well, I will keep that as a backup plan. But right now I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave. I have a train to catch. I have an appointment to meet with a sorceress in Juuban."

At Kuno's questioning look Ranma amplified, "I've been told that this sorceress has the power to alter the trigger of my curse from water to will power." By phrasing it that way Ranma avoided telling any outright lies. What she had said implied she hadn't had the change done yet, but didn't actually say so.

The auburn haired girl mulled that over for a moment. "Would that not be the same thing as a cure?" she asked with a frown.

The pigtailed girl shook her head in negation. "No, it doesn't work that way. Even though the curse isn't a living thing, sometimes it acts like it is. If the curse feels too much time has passed since I was in girl form it attracts water. If the trigger is will power the curse would just wait until my mind wandered and change me. To keep that from happening, I will just have to pick out times that I will be a girl by choice. Part of it would be to always sleep in girl form."

The auburn haired girl frowned. "Your life is… complicated."

Ranma laughed at that. "You have no idea. Now that you're not trying to date me, would you object to getting together to talk as friends sometime? I could tell you how really complicated my life is. It's kind of a long story."

As they moved toward the door, Kuno adjusted her clothing. "I don't doubt that. With magic curses and the like in your life, I suppose my own life will sound somewhat mundane. I'm guessing it would be as 'messed up' as yours, but until today I never experienced real magic, well aside from the wishing sword, that is."

After they exited the door of the office they waited for Kuno, who turned off all the lights before joining them and locking the door. She explained, "It is best to lock this place up. I would prefer if the principal doesn't find out that I have been sneaking into this room during his absences." She didn't add that she wanted to keep the rest to the student body out of the area as well.

Before Kuno could leave, Ranma suggested, "Maybe we could spar. I could stand to improve my weapons skills and you could probably stand to learn some unarmed tactics in case you should ever have to fight without your blade."

The auburn haired girl looked troubled and said, "I will need to think on that. I may need time to recover from this blow to my world view."

The school grounds were mostly deserted by now. The only students remaining in the area were members of the sports teams at practice and a few clubs holding meetings inside the school building. Of those still there, none noticed the trio of girls who exited the main building.

Ranma bounded away over the rooftops to the train station. Noriko headed back to the apartment, while Kuno walked along and considered her situation. As is always the case when one dreads an upcoming confrontation, it seemed all too soon that she reached the Kuno Mansion. She had no trouble negotiating the traps that studded the property. It wasn't until she got inside the door that she was challenged in the entrance hall.

Kodachi stood brandishing two of her spiked gymnastics clubs. She was dressed in one of her leotards in pale green with a rose pattern embroidered on it in black. The slight sheen of sweat on her face suggested that she had been working out before she came to the entrance hall in response to an alarm.

The gymnast's demeanor was grim. "I do not know who you are or how you got past our traps and security, girl, but you will go no further."

In a weary tone the auburn haired girl declared, "I am not an intruder. I have come to talk to you, 'Dachi-Chan."

Taken aback by the use of the pet name, the black haired girl relaxed her stance a bit. The look of grim determination was replaced by puzzlement. "Who are you that you address me in so familiar a manner? Though your face does bear a slight resemblance to others in my family, I do not recognize you. What is your name, girl?" 

Drawing herself up to her full height (which was less than it had been) the kendo champion proclaimed, "I am the rising star of the high school fencing world. My opponents cower at the mention of my name. The heavens tremble at the sound of my voice. I am called the Blue Thunder of Furinkan high school. I am Kuno Tatewaki, age 18." There was a rumble of thunder outside.

Kodachi's response was not what Kuno had hoped. The gymnast erupted into laughter. For a change, it was not her usual insane cackle, but the sound of genuine amusement. After a moment to get her breath back, Kodachi said, "To hear those words coming from the mouth of one such as yourself is hilarious. I did not think my brother possessed a sense of humor adequate to pull off such a jest. Is he waiting outside?"

Kuno sighed and said, "No, I am alone. Do you recall how Saotome Ranma has always claimed that he changes into the pigtailed girl through magic?"

The gymnast frowned. "What has that preposterous story have to do with you giving out my brother's introduction speech?"

The auburn haired girl sighed again. "I have this day discovered that the story is not so preposterous as I had once believed. Your brother has been subjected to a magic which is similar to that which afflicts Saotome. The result is the girl whom you now see standing before you."

"What?" The black haired girl was openly skeptical. "You are telling me that my brother has been transformed into a girl. Further, you are claiming that _you_ are the girl he was transformed into? Do you take me for a fool? Surely you must realize just how ridiculous that sounds? My brother must have taught you his greeting so you could say it so convincingly. I never did understand how he got the thunder to sound when he spoke it. I confess that you do bear some resemblance to him but my brother is a man, not a girl."

The kendo champion was keeping her cool, although she was starting to feel very annoyed. She was not used to having her word doubted like this. "It would be easy enough to prove what I say. Have Sasuke fetch some hot water that I may transform back to my male self. The water need not be boiling; bath water temperature would be sufficient."

Kodachi frowned. "I enjoy a good joke as much anyone, but this is becoming tedious. Still, I suppose I can humor you that far, girl." She turned her head and called out, "Sasuke! Bring your worthless self before me." She didn't question how the intruder knew the name of the family's ninja manservant. Obviously, if her brother had coached the girl in her impersonation, that information would have been included.

When the diminutive ninja presented himself, the mistress of the house ordered him to fetch water of the specified temperature.

Shortly the little man returned bearing a teacup that was full of steaming water. He handed it to the auburn haired girl

Kuno looked at her sister and decided to repeat the demonstration that Ranma had performed for her. She instructed, "Look at me closely. The transformation is fast but takes enough time that you can see the changes as they occur." She then threw the water in her face.

Kodachi and Sasuke both watched as the person before them grew taller, breasts receded, shoulders grew wider, hips narrower. Hair went from auburn to brown and facial features became more angular.

"Tate-Chan?" Kodachi's eyes looked ready to pop from their sockets, her gymnastics clubs clattered to the floor. "It's true? Magic really works? Then the red haired hussy is really…"

Kuno finished for his sister, "She is really your 'beloved Ranma-Sama.'"

The gymnast shook her head, horror mirrored in her eyes. "All those times I attacked her. If I had succeeded in hurting her…"

"Then you would have been hurting the man you profess to love." Her brother completed again.

"I'm going to my room. I need to take some time alone to think on this," Kodachi announced as she turned and started to walk away. Her gait was unsteady. Before she was out the door she commanded, "Sasuke, return to your duties."

The little ninja paused and asked, "Will you be needing me for anything, Master Kuno?"

He was about to dismiss the little man but changed his mind. "Do you have anything prepared for supper?" 

"Yes, Master Kuno," the ninja replied. "Miss Kodachi ate earlier and I put your portion in the refrigerator. I can make something fresh if you don't mind waiting. If you are very hungry, I could re-heat your plate from earlier."

In a distracted tone the kendo champion said, "At the moment I really do not care. Re-heat the plate from before. Like my sister, I have much to think about. Many things that I believed, turn out to be different than I thought. Please bring the food to me in my chambers." He walked toward his room but paused at the doorway.

The young man turned and looked at his servant. "Tell me this Sasuske, did you know of Saotome's sex changing."

The ninja seemed to study the floor for a moment. Finally he decided that his employer didn't appear to be in a vengeful mood. He answered, "Yes, young master, I knew. During the times I've conducted surveillance on Ranma, I've witnessed the transformation many times. I tried to tell you of it, but you refused to listen. The mistress was similarly unwilling to hear those portions of my reports."

Kuno shook his head. "It is said that ignorance is bliss. Now that my eyes have been opened to this truth, I can truly say that I am not a happy man. At least happy or unhappy, I am a man once again. Go and fetch me that food." He went through the door of the entrance hall and headed toward his room.

As he walked toward the kitchen, Sasuke thought about the situation. It was good that the Master and Mistress were now aware of the truth. It was a shame that they had to suffer such unhappiness because of it, but he could understand. The gender changing curse was pretty hard to believe. Given their history, it was not difficult to grasp how it had required such a personal demonstration to make them believe.

As he got to the kitchen and took the covered plate out of the refrigerator, Sasuke thought further. He had to admit that he rather liked the young Saotome. The boy/girl was a nice person and had always been pleasant to Sasuke on the few occasions they had interacted. Well, at least when he had not been caught spying.

The ninja manservant could only hope that having been relieved of their delusions in this one matter, possibly the young master and mistress would come to re-examine some of their other delusions. Perhaps a shock of this sort was what they needed to push them both toward sanity. He certainly hoped so.

Author's Note: The Kuno's know about the curse now and, more importantly, they believe in it. Will this evolve into an actual friendship between the parties involved? Possibly, but there is still the Kuno's belief in their high social station. At least this should end the rivalry.

My thanks to UNSpacy000 for beta reading this chapter.

One of the reasons I stopped posting new chapters of this story on Media Miner was due to a bad case of writer's block. Since I started posting on FF I have gained the services of UNSpacy000. He actually volunteered to be a beta reader for me, I didn't need to recruit him. With his help and some suggestions, my creative juices have started to flow once more and I have the story nearly completed. This chapter you have just finished reading has never been posted anywhere before, not even on my blog. I hope nobody minds if the final chapters are sort of WAFFy.


	22. Chapter 22 Uncute Tomboy!

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 20

Tendo Family

Upon her arrival in Juuban, Ranma commenced roof hopping from the train station to the Spell Book. Before she had covered more than half the distance, a feminine voice called out, "Saotome-san, wait up please!"

She stopped on the next available roof and looked to see one of the Senshi make the leap from the next closest building. This Senshi was the tall brunette with the ponytail and the green skirted fuku. She was one of the two martial arts otaku who had been so impressed with her the last time.

When the Senshi was closer, Ranma politely bowed and said, "Greetings Sailor Jupiter. I remember you from our previous meeting. I hope you weren't going to invite me to join in on another fight against a monster. I am supposed to meet a tutor, and don't have much time before my scheduled lesson."

Oddly enough, the girl seemed nervous. She returned Ranma's bow and seemed to fidget. This was a warrior that fought monsters. What could make such person nervous?

Eventually the tall brunette finally managed to speak, "Oh… No. It's nothing like that. Actually, since I gave you my autograph... I was wondering if you would return the favor." She held out a small bound book and a pen.

The redhead hesitantly accepted the book and pen. "_Wow, nobody ever asked for my autograph before_." She thought a moment before writing, "To Sailor Jupiter, For Love and Justice, Keep Fighting. Saotome Ranma."

When Ranma handed the book and pen back, the pony tailed brunette clutched it to her bosom and bowed low. "Thank you very much, Saotome-Sama. This means a lot to me."

She looked like she was going to leave, but she stopped and said, "I want to apologize again for the Outers attacking you."

With a somewhat resigned shrug, Ranma told her fan, "That's Ok. I'm a martial artist with a reputation. I get attacked a lot. I guess I can understand how they might think I was an enemy when I changed sexes like that. I'm just glad Pluto stepped in before anyone got seriously hurt."

Jupiter looked at the redhead with wide eyes and blinked a few times. This girl/guy was just shrugging off being attacked by the Senshi? She must be stronger than even her reputation hinted. And really, an apology was warranted. "Well, I won't keep you if you have someplace you need to be." The princess of Jupiter leapt to another rooftop and moved off toward her home.

A couple of rooftops away, the Senshi of Jupiter paused. It wasn't even like they had never met sex changers before. The Starlights had changed sexes. There just seemed to be a major disagreement between the Inners and Outers about them. While the Starlights had come to Earth for their own reasons, they had still helped in the fight against Galaxia. She didn't know why the Outers had always treated the visiting alien Senshi as enemies.

Ranma watched the Senshi roof hop away and then shook her head before she continued on her way. As she went she wondered if she was going to meet up with Senshi every time she went to Juuban. As long as it was only fans she had to deal with and not enemies, it might actually be rather nice.

A short while later Ranma was seated in a comfortable chair at the table in the work room of the Spell Book. Ranma noticed that the chalk on the floor from the spell to change her curse trigger was now gone, cleaned up by the previously mentioned, but not seen, assistant.

"Before we start the lesson, I have a question," Ranma started. The older woman inclined her head to indicate Ranma should go ahead and ask her question. "I was sort of wondering if we could make teleportation the next bit of magic we focus on."

The sorceress frowned as she considered that. "I was hoping to concentrate on giving you a good grounding in the basics and safety. Was there a reason why you wanted to proceed to teleportation next?"

"Yeah," the sex changer replied. "I live in Nerima and it takes time riding the train to get here. If I could teleport to get here, that would solve my problems with commuting."

Ms. Watanabe thought about it. "I can understand why it might be a problem when you live so far away. I can't move closer to you, and I can understand why you wouldn't want to move away from your current school while working on making up for missed time. You might consider transferring to another school and moving closer after the end of this school year."

"I suppose so," Ranma allowed. "Still, the time I spend on the train and roof hopping is time that I could be doing other stuff if I had a faster way to get here."

Her magic sensei seemed to have an internal argument with herself over this. Finally, Ms. Watanabe said, "You really do need to learn some basic magic theory before getting into too much applied magic. Let's do this. The first half of the lesson (or maybe more) we work on basic magic, including theory, rules and safety. The remainder of the time we work on teleportation. Until you have mastered teleportation, I suggest that you bring books with you to read on the train."

Ranma frowned for a moment as she considered that. Reading a book on the train would imply riding inside instead of clinging to the roof of a train car. To do otherwise would risk losing the book, and she wasn't thrilled by the possibility. She finally said, "Ok. Until I learn how to teleport and have mastered it to your satisfaction, I'll study while I'm on the train."

Basic magic related to what the different colors of mana could be used for. It also included information on ways to categorize the magic within the colors. As well as the colors, the magic had a feel to it and in some forms even an odor. The mana used for teleportation was blue in color and felt silky smooth but was odorless. Other varieties of mana could feel wet or oily or even fuzzy. Dark magics generally smelled bad while the energies that fell into the Light had scents like flowers or tasty foods.

This brought a momentary thought to Ranma's mind. Kasumi always smelled of baked goods and other foods. She often used a floral scented shampoo and conditioner. Did that mean she was invoking light magic? "_Don't be silly_," she chided herself. Ranma hadn't even been able to sense magic when she had first noticed Kasumi's scent.

Watanabe sensei explained why the teleportation spell did not have a scent that permeated its mana. "Teleportation is of neither dark nor light magic. It of a type I like to call utility magic. Spells of this category are only made good or evil by how they are used."

"Could you explain that?" Ranma begged.

"Alright," the sorceress agreed. "I'll give you some examples. If you used a teleportation spell to move injured people to a hospital, then it would be of the light or 'good.' If you teleported inside of a bank vault to rob it, that would be of the dark or 'evil.' On the other hand if you just use it to move you from place to place, that would be neither of light or dark, therefore neutral. Of course if you use the spell to teleport you everywhere so you don't have to walk, that would just be lazy." She grinned as she said that last part.

After they had been working on the lesson for a while, the older woman looked at the clock and frowned. She wanted to continue with basic magic theory, but she had promised. "The clothing swap spell," she began, "is a limited teleportation spell. The reason why you first coated your skin with mana was so the clothing from stuff space 'ported to the outside of your skin. It can be rather painful and possibly even fatal when an item of clothing 'ports inside your body."

That brought a disturbing image to mind. Ranma had a brief mental image of a pair of panties being teleported into her own heart. She winced and said, "That's why you said to not experiment, right?"

"Exactly!" The sorceress confirmed. "Once you've learned the basic rules of magic, you can play around with it to your heart's content. But until then, playing around is something you should avoid."

Ranma had to exert self-control to keep from rolling her eyes. She already got the message about magic safety. Too many more repetitions and it would start to get tedious.

Ms. Watanabe began, "There is more than one way to teleport. Some of them are very risky to use. For safety, you should only try to teleport to a place you have actually been to before, can see from where you are or can otherwise sense. It is also best when the teleport is an exchange like in the clothing swap."

Frowning, Ranma asked, "If I'm teleporting myself, what do I exchange with?"

"Air," was the answer. "When teleporting, you can exchange yourself with an amount of air equal to your volume and in the same shape. That will also prevent a bang or pop when you teleport."

When the girl gave a questioning look the sorceress amplified on her statement, "If there is no exchange, air will rush in to fill the space that was occupied by your teleported object. How loud a noise it makes depends on how big the object is. At the other end of the teleport air is displaced by the arriving object, also making a sound."

With a nod, Ranma answered, "So by exchanging with air, the teleport is silent?"

"Exactly!" The sorceress explained, "The silent teleport is a good thing if you are trying to avoid attracting attention. Unless you are trying to advertise that you can do things that mundane people can't, it is always best to teleport to a location where you won't be observed."

The young girl nodded again.

With a thoughtful expression, the sorceress added, "There are times when a little misdirection is called for. If you are teleporting to a place where you know there will be people there to see you arrive, and if they know that you can teleport, you can still teleport in silence, but create a flash of light as you arrive. That will give the people the impression that the flash of light is a part of the teleport and would allow you to sneak up on those people later if you need to."

Ms. Watanabe continued, "Another reason to only teleport to places you can see or otherwise sense is that you might accidentally teleport into a solid object. Now if you are teleporting as an exchange you won't find yourself phased into a wall, but you would make a hole. Doing that could cause whatever you teleported into to collapse on you and possibly kill you. You might be able to avoid that if you could react fast enough to teleport again before you are in trouble, but you would have to be much more skilled in teleporting before you can count on being able to do that."

The older woman got up and went to a cabinet. She took a chessboard and a box from the bottom shelf in the cabinet then brought them back to the worktable. She set the wooden chessboard in the center of the table and from the box took out a piece with a carved horse's head, a knight.

She placed the chess piece on a square in the corner of the board and said, "It's always good to start small and work your way to bigger things. You should always start small and by teleporting objects because if you mess up you aren't injuring yourself. This knight will be your practice piece. It seems appropriate, considering your name."

Continuing, the sorceress instructed, "Reach out with those magic senses you just learned about. Use them to look at the knight. Feel the shape, texture and weight. Get a feel for the size."

When Ms. Watanabe's own magic senses told her Ranma had done as directed she said, "Now coat the knight with mana of the same color and texture as you used for the clothing swap. After you've done that, charge the knight with mana."

After a moment she instructed, "In the opposite corner of the chessboard enclose some air in a shell of mana the same shape as the knight then charge the air inside the shell the same way you did the knight." When she was satisfied that her instructions were followed, she said, "Now, just like the clothing swap, switch the two."

Since this exercise had nothing to do with the inventory of her stuff space, it was a little different, but she gave the command. To visual senses, the chess knight appeared to vanish from one corner of the board and reappeared in the opposite corner. The actual transit time was so brief that for mundane eyes, an observer would likely think that the chess piece was in two places at once for the briefest instant. The reason for that was the same phenomenon that allowed they eye to perceive a series of still images as a movie.

Ranma opened her eyes and proclaimed with a grin, "Yatta! I did it!"

"Indeed you did," the sorceress confirmed. "We only have about five minutes left. I have another student coming after that. Practice teleporting the knight for the time you have left. Before you leave, please put the knight back in its box."

For those five minutes Ranma teleported the knight to the corners of the board, then to the center. She was disappointed when she was told her time was up.

Ms. Watanabe pointed out, "If you hurry you can catch the next train to Nerima."

As she was leaving, Ranma looked around for the other student, but couldn't see anyone other than the store clerk. Oh, well. Maybe she'd see who else the sorceress was teaching some other time.

After getting off the train, Ranma stopped in a drug store and bought a chess set to use for practice. The one she got used a cardboard playing field and weighted plastic pieces instead of the nice wooden ones Watanabe sensei had, but they would good enough for teleportation practice. Perhaps instead of just randomly moving pieces around the board, she could play the game against Noriko while teleporting the pieces to make her moves. That might make it more fun and challenging.

The next morning, the two girls shared a bath after their daily spar. After she had gotten over her initial nervousness about being in the bath with a naked girl, Ranma was now getting to the point where it didn't disturb her at all. In fact, she was becoming comfortable with it.

She still felt hesitant to move to the next step in Noriko's suggested program. That was for them to share the bath when they were opposite genders. Ranma was afraid that he would embarrass himself by getting aroused. Noriko had just said she would take it as a compliment and would otherwise pay no attention to it.

Noriko didn't mention that when Ranma finally loosened up enough to go along with her suggestion, she would pay as much attention as she could without being obvious about it. At that time she would take careful note of the size and shape of his aroused organ and remember every detail. Afterward it would play a prominent role in her fantasies as she _entertained_ herself in her room. She even knew of a place that could make a custom replica of the organ if supplied with either a plaster cast of the original or a drawing to scale. It would be good to practice with until Ranma could get over his shyness.

While Noriko's real estate holdings didn't include any dojos, there were some buildings that could be converted to be used that way. She was going to go out to look at some that day.

Ranma again changed into a guy just before he arrived at the gates of the school. With the clothing swap spell, he exchanged his girl's outfit for a Furinkan boys' school uniform. By coincidence Akane arrived at the same time. Ranma gave her a nod in greeting and they walked through the gates together.

Standing beside the usual tree was Kuno Tatewaki. Ranma noted that for the first time he could remember, Kuno was dressed in a normal school uniform instead of the kendo outfit. The upperclassman waved at them and called out, "Saotome, Akane, I wish to speak to you."

The two teens shared a glance before they shrugged and walked over. At least Kuno wasn't waving his bokken around. He wasn't shouting, nor was he proclaiming his love for Akane. Neither was he denouncing Ranma for the practice of sorcery. Maybe this wouldn't be too stressful.

When they got closer, the kendo champion bowed low and said, "Tendo Akane I offer you my most abject apologies. Through the use of most extreme methods, Saotome has made me see the truth of many things that have been happening. I was not allowing myself to accept those truths."

He continued, "For trying to force upon you attentions that you found unwelcome, I am truly sorry. If there is any way I can make amends for the harm that was done to you by the Dating Challenge, please let me know. I stand ready to do whatever you might ask or accept any reasonable punishment you might ask."

Akane studied his face for a while but then said, "I'll need to think about that for a while. When I think of a way you can make it up to me, I'll let you know. In the meantime, just… don't talk to me. I've got too many things to deal with right now and your silence would help."

"As you wish." Kuno bowed to them. "I take my leave of you then. Akane, Saotome."

The youngest Tendo stood there blinking at the retreating back of the man who had been the biggest thorn in her side for months. To have him so suddenly change and start acting like a normal person was very confusing. She turned and asked, "Ranma, what did you do to him?"

The pigtailed boy shrugged. "I did what I told you I was going to. Noriko and I baited a trap for Kuno by promising him information about my girl form. When he took us to the principal's office in the basement we doused him with Instant Nyaniichuan water. He got to experience a small taste of what being a girl was like. I'd say it shook him out of his delusional world. Knowing him, he'll likely get over it in a day or two and go back to being the same perverted idiot he always was."

A thought occurring to her, Akane asked, "What do you do if he decides that he's still attracted to the pigtailed girl even if she does change into a boy?"

With a thoughtful expression, Ranma replied, "I doubt it. I got the feeling that the idea of possibly getting into what he would think of as a gay relationship really bothers him."

Then he shook his head. "Even if he could get over that, it's not like he'd be the only one. Right now there's a group of guys who seem to take turns asking if my girl side will date them. They ask _while_ I'm a guy. I tend to wonder if they have some kind of club where the first one to actually get a date with me (or gets me into bed) wins some kind of prize or something."

Under her breath, Akane said, "Pervert." Ranma heard it but wasn't sure if she was directing the word at himself or the boys trying to date his girl form. He decided it didn't matter, because Akane had always been too ready to stick that label on people. It made him glad the engagement was off.

The pigtail boy was about to turn to head into the school when Akane caught his attention. "There's something I've been wanting to ask you about."

Ranma did his best to hide his annoyance and responded, "What did you want to know?"

With an angry expression on her face, the raven haired girl stated, "I had half the boys in school fighting me to get a date. Kuno was always praising my beauty. Why were you always calling me 'uncute'?"

Was the girl really that dense? He matched her glare with one of his own. "I'd have thought you would have figured it out by now. It was never about your looks. You are really pretty and when you smile – beautiful. It's your attitude that's uncute."

Now getting angrier, Akane demanded, "What's wrong with my attitude?"

He thought, "_Spoiled brat, daddy's little princess_." Out loud he said, "When you hit me for something you think I did and don't give me a chance to explain myself – uncute! When you yell at me – uncute! When you insult me – uncute! And when you bash me with the mallet – _very_ uncute. All of that crap was after you asked, 'do you want to be friends?' We all saw how long that lasted." He made an emphatic gesture on every use of the word "uncute."

Ranma probably should have stopped there. After all, he had answered her question. However, he was on a roll now and didn't want to stop. He demanded, "You don't like being called uncute? How about you always calling me a pervert when I didn't do anything to deserve it? How about the way you never trust me? Now that the engagement is off, whether I'm a pervert or not is none of your concern."

He felt like he was working up a good head of steam now. "In fact what I do and who I do it with aren't your business anymore. I could be making out with everyone on the girls' soccer team in my male form and half of the boys' team in my girl form and it still wouldn't be your concern. In fact, as long as I'm not bothering you, your sisters or friends, what I do is NO BUSINESS of yours!"

Akane's eyes had gone wide and she moved back a step from the vehemence of his response. He wasn't finished yet. "Now that we're not engaged anymore and I'm not living at your house, I don't have to take any of your CRAP! Let me give fair warning. If you EVER pull that mallet on me again, I'm gonna take it away and bash you with it instead! Is that CLEAR?"

The dark haired girl was in shock. Had she really been so horrible to Ranma that it would make him hate her like this? She fought tears and mumbled something.

Ranma wasn't having it. He said, "I didn't hear that."

A little louder, the girl said, "It's clear."

He ignored the anguished expression on her face for once. He announced, "Right now I'm going to tell you what you told Kuno. If you don't have something specific to say about school or schoolwork... don't talk to me."

Before he could allow himself to be influenced by the tears he saw starting to drip down Akane's face, Ranma turned and stalked away. Even if he were normally a sucker for feminine tears, he wasn't going to let it get to him this time. Let her cry! She deserved it! He almost succeeded in convincing himself.

Standing in the schoolyard, Akane rubbed at her face to wipe off tears. "_He hates me_," She thought. She argued with herself. Why should she care how a perverted jerk felt about her? Sure she hit him with the mallet, and she had already admitted that he didn't always deserve it. She was sure she didn't hit him _that_ much or that hard.

The raven haired girl looked at the clock on the tower and realized that she had to get going. If she didn't hurry, she would be out in the hall holding buckets and for the first time in a long time, she'd be doing it without Ranma.

For the rest of the day, the youngest Tendo wondered if Ranma was using the Soul of Ice. The air between them seemed exceedingly cold. She kept trying to summon up anger at him. Where did he get off being mad at her? He was always the one in the wrong; it was _always _his fault, wasn't it? However, no matter how hard she tried, Akane couldn't come up with an argument that would convincingly shift the blame to Ranma this time.

At the end of the school day she headed off toward her home and noticed Ranma walking away in a different direction. She realized that she missed his presence. "_I've lost him_," She thought. Why did that thought hurt so much? Why would she want to be around a jerk like him?

For some reason the fact that Ranma wasn't going to get together with any of the other fiancés bothered her too. If he had said he was going to marry Shampoo or Ukyo she could at least have a target for her ire, someone to blame. But Ranma had broken it off with both of his other fiancées. From what happened with Kuno that morning, it seemed likely that things were finished with Kodachi as well.

The image of a pretty face with blonde hair came to her mind. No, she might accuse the former Happosai of seducing the boy into having sex, but love? That just didn't seem possible

Wait a minute! Happosai may have been a 300 year old pervert, but he was a _male _pervert. Even if he was changed into a girl now, she should have had about as much of an idea of how to use feminine wiles to trap a man as a fish knows about ice skating. Maybe Noriko was seducing Ranma's girl side? Somehow that didn't feel right either.

This was depressing to think about. If Akane couldn't blame the other fiancées and she couldn't blame Ranma or Noriko, then that just left Akane herself. That would mean that she had driven Ranma away through her own actions. Considering the way Ranma had spoken to her back in the morning - that seemed to be what he believed.

Thinking about this was giving the youngest Tendo a headache. She decided she would talk it over with Kasumi. Maybe her big sister would have a helpful suggestion.

Since Ranma had nothing like the business with Kuno this day, he transformed into her female form and headed directly to the train station for the trip to Juuban. When she was roof hopping to the bookstore, she saw the Senshi off in the distance roof hopping in a different direction. While Ranma felt curious about what they were up to, she decided that it was none of her business and continued on to her lesson.

This time, the lesson had much more in the way of basic magic theory than the last time. When they reached the halfway point of the scheduled session, Ms. Watanabe pulled out the chessboard, and then she got out a small cardboard box and set that onto the board.

"This time you will be learning to use your magical perception in combination with the teleportation spell," stated the sorceress. "You must use your magic to scan the inside of the box and the chess piece that is inside. The first thing I want you to do is to look inside the box and tell me which chess piece it is. I could have used any of the other pieces or I could have used the knight again."

Ranma nodded and leaned on her folded arms on the table top to look at the box. She was already able to use her magic senses to feel the shape of the object she was going to teleport within the target space. The only difference this time was that she had to sense through the cardboard box, which was something that was essentially nothing more than stiff paper and should not be a barrier to magic.

She first used the magic sense to feel the outer shape of the box. That part worked fine, but the tricky part was coming up. She concentrated on pushing her perception through the cardboard. At first it was difficult, but she suddenly felt all of the space inside the box. It was taller than the knight and shaped like one of the towers of a European castle. It was difficult to tell for sure inside the box, but she thought she could get an indication of the color. She reported, "The piece in the box is a rook. Uh... I think it's one of the black ones."

The older woman smiled broadly and clapped her hands. "That was excellent! I was actually expecting it to take you longer to be able to detect the color of the piece. Now that you have learned to 'see through' something that is a barrier to visual sight, let's see if you can teleport it out of there and to the center of the board."

With a slight nod that didn't affect her concentration, Ranma continued to rest her chin on her arms. Now that she could sense the rook, it seemed fairly easy to follow the same steps as she had when she was teleporting a knight that was in plain sight. A few moments later the chess piece appeared in the center of the board.

"Very good!" Watanabe-san approved. "For the rest of this session I want you to practice teleporting that rook into and out of the box. For homework, you can do more of the same, but you will need to sense things at a greater distance. Some of the exercises for the use of magic sight would be to check out the contents of your refrigerator without opening the door or looking at the contents of your dresser drawers without opening them. You could also practice teleporting garments out of the closed dresser drawers and directly into your stuff space."

"For more distant viewing, I do _not_ suggest spying on your neighbors or others," the older woman admonished. "Although some students do that sort of thing, it is not an ethical use of magic. However, you might want to use it to view objects in the storage area in the basement of your apartment building. You might use it to look at the contents of your mailbox and teleport them into your apartment without opening the box."

Nodding, Ranma agreed that that would be good practice. She also thought she could use the distance viewing to look around in Furinkan after it was closed for the day. She could also look at the Tendo dojo to see what was happening there. That thought looking at the Tendo dojo brought a frown to her face, as she realized that it would be an invasion of privacy. Better limit the distance viewing to public buildings and places like parks, streets and the like.

Almost before she realized it, the session was over and she had to leave. As she rode the train back she planned how she would practice the teleportation. She could sense her chess pieces inside the box they had come in and teleport them out onto the board. When she had them all out she could 'port them back in. The fact that the chess pieces were in a jumbled up pile inside the box might make it a bit more challenging.

When she got back to the apartment building, she stopped in the front hallway and used her magic sight to look into the mailbox. After a surreptitious look at her surroundings, Ranma decided that this was too public a place to practice teleportation. If someone were to come in while she was practicing, it would be difficult to explain how her mail just appeared in her hand.

A scan of the contents of the mailbox proved that there was nothing in it other than junk mail. Very well, maybe she could practice after all. She focused her perceptions on the mailbox and on the trashcan the management had thoughtfully provided. Then she quickly teleported the junk mail directly from the mailbox to the trashcan before anyone else arrived. Even if anyone had walked in at that moment they wouldn't have seen anything beyond a teenage girl staring intently at her mailbox. While it would have been easy enough to have come up with an excuse for that, she didn't really want to.

With a grin, Ranma headed up the stairs to her apartment on the second floor. Pulling her keys from a pocket she wondered how Noriko's day had gone.

Author's Note: Ranma's magical education continues and she is learning the basics of teleportation. With the engagement off, has Akane now blown her chance at keeping even a friendship with Ranma? Stay tuned.

Additional Note: Last chapter I forgot to give proper credit to UNSpacy000 for contributing the idea of Kuno thinking that Ranma wanted to add her to his harem. When he beta reads, he sometimes adds little (and some not so little) bits that are intended as jokes. This time his portrayal of Kuno's extreme reaction to her sex change seemed so perfectly in character for the idiot samurai wannabe that I just had to include it.


	23. Chapter 23 Tendo Family

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga in the Ranmaverse.

Chapter 21

Tendo Family

Earlier that same day after Ranma had left for school, Noriko left to run her own errands. When she got to the entrance hall of the apartment building, she encountered another of the tenants of the building.

The man looked a little shorter than Noriko herself, and he had dark hair with a bald spot on the back. He also wore glasses and a dark gray suit of conservative cut but still looked cheap, so he was probably a salaryman. He appeared to be in his 40's.

When he heard the sound of footsteps behind him, the man turned and noticed Noriko. He bowed and greeted, "Hello. I haven't seen you before, so I'm guessing you are one of the girls who moved into that three bedroom on the second floor."

Noriko returned the bow. She could see that the man was giving her a good look. Although the man's words were courteous, she had the feeling he was undressing her with his eyes. She gave no indication that she didn't like the look he was giving her as she said, "Yes, I am Tendo Noriko. My roommate, Saotome Ranma, and I have just recently moved in. So far you are only about the third other tenant I've met."

"Oh," he responded. "Well, I am Hagashi Takeo and I live in 4F. Who else have you met?"

"Well, I've met Ninomiya-san and Nakashima-san," the blonde returned politely.

"Hmm," Hagashi hummed. He looked around before continuing, "I'd like you to know Nakashima-san is not typical of the residents of this building. Very few of us are nosy busybodies like she is. I'm sure she must have made some kind of crack about how you must have gaijin blood to have blonde hair."

"Yes, she did," the blonde said with some asperity.

The man shook his head. "Yeah, I thought so."

"Now, as to Ninomiya-san..." he trailed off and seemed to think. "It seems odd that a child as young as she is doesn't have an adult there to look after her. I've heard her talk about her Aunt, but I don't think I've seen the woman more than three times in the whole time the girl has been living here. I mentioned it to the manager and he more or less politely told me to mind my own business."

Noriko's eyebrows rose up for a moment before she shrugged her shoulders.

The salaryman looked at the attractive blonde again. He said, "Why don't you and your roommate come up to my apartment some evening? We could have a few drinks and get better acquainted."

On hearing that, the former man responded, "Would there be any of the other tenants there for us to meet with?"

"Probably not," the man admitted.

"Thank you for the invitation, but I'm not sure it would be appropriate for my roommate and I to be alone with you in your apartment," she said. "Ranma is seeing someone and so am I."

He looked a little disappointed but shrugged. "Well, no harm in asking. You are really beautiful and I've heard that your roommate is quite a looker herself."

"Oh, she is," Noriko responded. "I should really tell you something that you might want to pass along to any other single men who feel inclined to offer themselves as possible boyfriends to either myself or Ranma."

At her serious expression he nodded. "You may have heard stories about the 'super powered' martial artists that live here in Nerima. Well, the stories are true. Ranma is one of those super powered martial artists and I'm another one. So if anyone doesn't feel inclined to accept a verbal refusal, they will receive a far more physical, and painful one."

The salaryman stood for a moment with wide eyes before he said, "I see. I can understand. I won't be asking you on any dates then. I hope you won't feel offended if I do look at you and your roommate when you are around."

At least the man was honest. She chuckled and told him, "Just looking is acceptable, but leering is not. After all, who am I to interfere with a man's appreciation of beauty?"

The man bowed and headed out the door.

In truth, Noriko wasn't sure how much attraction she felt to any men other than Ranma. Maybe it was the fact that he had been there during her transformation and that made him the one she had fixated on. She just found herself comparing other men to Ranma and finding the others coming up short.

Oh, well. She went out and leapt to the roof of a building across the street. From there she roof hopped to the offices of her property management company. While the company mostly handled the rentals of the buildings that were build on Noriko's land holdings, there was a real estate division that handled the buying, selling and leasing of other properties.

After some questioning, she was ushered into an office where she met with a real estate agent by the name of Kamaki Tetsuo. The man was tall and slender with a full head of black hair that had the slightest touches of gray. He wore wire rim glasses and a blue suit but without a tie.

He bowed to the young woman and said, "Greetings Miss Tendo. May I offer you tea?"

Noriko politely refused. Nodding, the real estate agent got right to business. "I have been informed of your requirements. I have done some searching in the computer for properties to see what we have. I'm afraid that at the present time there are no dojos on the market or at least none likely to fit your needs."

"Oh?" the blonde responded. "Are you saying you do have a dojo or two?"

He nodded and said, "Yes. I'm not sure how much you will like them. Two of the places are simply units in strip malls. The spaces were designed to be shops and were converted to be used as dojos. They are spacious enough, but I recommend you see what else we have before you decide."

"Very well, what else do you have?" she asked.

"Now we are moving out of places that were set up as dojos and into the category of places that could be converted to that function," he warned. She motioned for him to continue. She brought her chair up closer so she could see the listings that were brought up on his computer monitor.

Before going very far in their search, Mr. Kamaki pointed out, "Out of the properties I am showing you, any could be converted into dojos. The major differences are in how much remodeling work will have to be done. From what I know of it, I would assume that the major requirement is at least one large, open room with rooms for students to change into their workout clothes and toilet facilities."

Noriko considered that and then nodded. "That would likely be a minimum. It would be helpful if there were showers and at least one additional room that could be devoted to physical training, like a weight room."

He jotted some notes on a pad and then typed on his computer.

Two hours later Noriko accepted the offer of tea and sipped at it while Kamaki-san continued to look at properties. After a while he finally said, "That is nearly the last. I have one more, but I think it may be larger than what you have in mind."

When she just gestured for him to continue, he clicked his mouse and brought a page up on the screen. He explained, "This is actually a fairly new building. The owner who had it built was a major boxing fan and had ambitions to train the next heavyweight champion of the world."

"This building has a locker room larger than most schools possess with a big shower room," he said, and brought up pictures. "There is a fully equipped weight room along with some fairly modern exercise machines like treadmill, stair climber and the like."

Frowning on hearing that, Noriko demanded, "Wait a minute. Are you telling me that the equipment you just mentioned comes with the building? Why hasn't the owner sold the equipment off separately already?"

He nodded. "I was wondering if you were going to catch that. It's sort of a sad story. For someone who was so obsessed with such a physical sport as boxing, the owner himself was in relatively poor health. He died of a heart attack before they could open the gym for business."

Mr. Kamaki continued, "His wife didn't much care for her husband's 'hobby' and so just wants to get rid of the place and is willing to sell it with everything in it, other than a few of her husband's personal belongings which she has already collected. So the place goes pretty much as is. If there's anything in the place you don't want to keep you can sell it."

The blonde woman considered that for a time before she said, "Well, it sounds bigger than what I had in mind, but that doesn't rule it out. I have at least one other project that might need a home. If this place is big enough, I might be able to use the extra space."

"Would you like to go see it?"

"Sure, why not?" She stood up.

He printed out a sheet from his computer and grabbed a briefcase. Then he led Noriko to the parking lot under the building. There he went to a modest Toyota sedan in blue and he gallantly unlocked and opened the door for Noriko before he went to the driver's side. The back seat had a few brochures and printouts scattered on it with listings for other properties.

As they drove, the real estate agent told her, "The gym is right on a bus route with the closest stop just one block away. There is a train station about six blocks away, making it fairly easy for people from other parts of the city to get there. That should allow you to appeal to students over a good, wide area of the city."

Before they got to the boxing gym, they visited some of the other sites from the listings. One of the strip mall dojos looked like it would work, but Noriko just wasn't sure. It just didn't feel right.

It was hours later that they arrived at the site of the boxing gym. Other buildings in the area were offices and retail space. This building was free standing and appeared to be three stories tall.

When they got to the door, the agent used his key to open a box that was fastened to the door knob. From this he took a key that he used to unlock the door of the building. As they entered, Kamaki-san began reading from the listing he had printed out, "This floor has several offices and storage rooms. There is also a basement which has all of the mechanical systems for the building as well as some more storage space. The gym takes up the top two floors of the building."

They moved through the building toward the stairs. As they went, Noriko thought that she might turn one or more of the offices into the center for counseling of victims of rape and other forms of sexual abuse. Maybe she could rent some of the other offices out to doctors or others of that sort.

As they went up the stairs, Kamaki-san led her to a door which he opened. This led into a large room that seemed to take up fully half of the upper portion of the building. There were two boxing rings in the space with a high ceiling that was a full two stories tall. High up on one of the walls there were windows that looked down from rooms on the third floor.

Hmm, Noriko mused. This had possibilities. The high ceiling would allow some of the aerial maneuvers of the Saotome half of the combined school to be performed. If the boxing rings were taken out, a wall could be built to divide the space into two training halls. One could be devoted to training beginning and intermediate students in Kempo, while the second, larger hall could be used for the advanced students.

Since the beginners and intermediate students wouldn't need the additional vertical height, a ceiling could be put over their section to provide additional floor space for the third story. Possibly that extra floor space could be turned into living quarters for herself and Ranma.

"What else have you got to show me here?" Noriko asked.

He gestured for her to follow and lead the way back through the door. The next room they entered contained a wide variety of equipment. It was as she had seen in the photographs. Weights, both dumbbells and barbells were there, along with two treadmills, a stair climber and other such equipment. There was a heavy bag made of canvas and likely filled with sand. There was one multi-station "universal" weight machine as well.

Noriko walked up to a speed bag and struck it with a quick punch. She then watched as it swung rapidly back and forth. She wasn't sure if the speed bag was something she would need, but she saw spaces where additional equipment could be added. Punching posts and practice dummies could be brought in. Yes, this would do nicely.

Next they went back to the ring area and from there into the locker room. Even with two boxing rings, the locker room area seemed larger than was needed. In fact it was big enough that it could be divided into separate men's and women's locker rooms. From the locker room there was a doorway that led into a shower room. This too was large enough that it could be divided into two shower rooms. Toilet facilities were also in a room off of the showers.

There was also a separate room that included a therapy whirlpool tub. Likely that was to provide relaxation and soothing of sore muscles of tired boxers. It would also serve the same function for weary martial artists. It was looking good.

They then went to the stairs and on the half third floor they found the office of the former owner. The place looked ready to be used right away. There was a desk with office supplies as well as posters on the wall and a display case that held items of sports memorabilia. If the owner's wife had taken the personal items she had wanted out of the place, then she must not have wanted all of the sports related items.

If Noriko ended up buying this place, she would box up the items and offer them to the widow of the owner. If that woman didn't want them, then she would sell them. Noriko was not that big a fan of boxing or of the other sports represented.

Next to the big owners office there was a smaller office that was likely intended for a secretary. There were a few small rooms as well as what would likely be called an executive toilet room.

After she had inspected the last room, Noriko said, "Lets go back to your office and start the paperwork."

"You've decided?" he asked.

"Yes, I want this one," she replied. "I also know what I want to do to adapt it to my own purpose. Can you arrange for an architect to draw up plans for the remodeling?"

"I normally don't handle those things myself," he responded. "However, the property management company you own has architects on staff. They can have plans drawn up for you in a matter of days. They can also arrange for a contractor to do the actual remodeling work."

Noriko smiled. "Excellent! I find myself feeling anxious to get started."

They headed back to the car to return to the office.

After all of the paperwork was taken care of for the purchase of the boxing gym, Noriko went to find an architect and got a pair of them assigned to draw up plans for the remodeling she wanted in the building. She also arranged for the hire of a building contractor to begin the work as soon as the plans were written up and proper permits could be issued.

When she had done all she could for the getting the new dojo ready, Noriko roof hopped home. She was feeling quite pleased with herself when she got to the second floor and walked toward the door of her apartment.

What surprised Noriko was finding Ms. Hinako in child form knocking on the door of the apartment before she had gotten to it. She called out, "Hinako-chan, were you looking for me?"

The little girl whirled abruptly. It was obvious that she had not expected Noriko to come upon her in the hall. The young-looking brunette took a moment to regain her composure before saying, "Ohayo, Noriko. I was wondering if Ranma is home yet. I wanted to talk to him about where he is in his studies and what I might do to help him."

The blonde glanced at her watch and then replied, "Right now I believe Ranma would be in Juuban at her magic lesson. Would you like to come inside and wait?"

The teacher thought about that for a moment. She was lonely, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to be alone with the woman who had once been Happosai. Besides it seemed to be an imposition. Finally she said, "That's Ok. I'll head on up to my own apartment for now. I can talk to Ranma-san some other day."

Noriko pushed her key into the keyhole and shrugged. "As you wish. I'll see you later."

The blonde haired woman watched as Hinako proceeded down the hall toward the elevator. She could tell there was something bothering the little teacher, but apparently the girl didn't feel comfortable sharing it yet. She entered the apartment and shut the door behind her.

When Ranma let herself into the apartment, Noriko met her with a hug and a light kiss on the cheek. The redhead tolerated it, but had the odd thought that this resembled some TV shows she had watched when she was living with the Tendos. The greeting Noriko had just given her was like a wife welcoming her husband back from work. She tried to banish that thought from her mind, but couldn't dismiss it completely.

"So, what did you study in magic lessons today?" the blonde asked.

"Teleportation," Ranma answered. "I learned how to teleport things into and out of a box. As practice, I teleported the junk mail from the mailbox into the trashcan."

Noriko considered that for a moment. "You really should at least look at the mail before you throw it away. Sometimes even junk mail can contain coupons that would be useful."

"Ok, no problem," Ranma answered. She seemed to pause in thought for a moment, and then two envelopes suddenly appeared in her hand. "Here you go," she said and handed the mail to her roommate.

The former man blinked owlishly as she contemplated the mail in her hand. That was a really neat trick. She would have to learn it. She glanced at the mail and determined that they were advertisements for things neither she nor Ranma needed. She handed them back, and said, "Ok, nothing here we need." A moment later the envelopes disappeared, teleported back to the trashcan in the entrance hall.

She paused for a moment and then decided to give her own news. "I found a building that can be converted to a dojo."

"Oh yeah?"

Noriko explained to her roommate what she had been doing that day and about the boxing gym she had found.

Ranma frowned on hearing that. She ventured, "It sounds bigger than you would really need."

"Not really," the blonde countered. She told Ranma about her plans for remodeling.

Ranma's eyebrows rose as she thought about it. "Oh, I get it. Yeah, I can see it. You would make it more like one of those big karate or judo schools instead of a family school like the Tendo's." 

With a nod, Noriko clarified further, "For the beginners and children's classes, I was thinking we would start them on basic Kempo. That would help to get around the generally perverted reputation that Anything Goes has gained. Then for the advanced classed we could do a discriminate grappling class instead of indiscriminate."

"That might work," Ranma allowed. "I still think you need a completely new name for it. Such a minor change isn't going to fool people. The most advanced students would have heard of Masabesu Kakuto Ryu and the instructors will almost certainly have heard."

"I'm open to suggestions on what to change the name to," the blonde challenged.

"Well, let me think about it for a while," Ranma begged.

"Fair enough," was the former man's reply. "I talked to the people at the property management company. With their help I've hired a crew to do the remodeling work and get the new dojo ready for classes. They tell me they can start next Monday and that it will take at least a month and possibly two months to finish."

"I heard from Nabiki today," Noriko added. "She was scheduled for her interview with the property management company this afternoon. She was probably having her interview while you were at your magic lesson. She left a message on the machine that said she was going to drop by and let us know how that came out, as well as having some 'other news' to tell us."

That evening it was Ranma's turn to do the cooking. The plan that she and Noriko had agreed upon was to fix something a little fancier than what either of them were used to making. Their idea was to expand their knowledge and skills in food preparation over time.

Ranma was just putting the dishes of food on the table when the doorbell rang. Noriko said, "You finish with that, I'll get the door. It's probably Nabiki."

A short while later Noriko came into the kitchen with Nabiki in tow. The middle Tendo sister was carrying a file folder. Ranma nodded to her and greeted, "Hi Nabs."

The brunette begged, "Please don't call me that," but her words lacked any force. It was more like something she said out of habit but didn't really care about any more.

Ranma said, "Noriko didn't know when you'd be getting here so I went ahead and made dinner. We're just about ready to sit down to eat. Would you like to join us?"

The middle Tendo shook her head. "Kasumi promised to have something ready for me when I got back. I'll have some tea though, if you've got enough."

The redhead grinned. "I made extra just in case." She poured and set the cup on the table and knelt at her own place. Noriko took her place and Nabiki knelt as well.

Ranma picked up her chopsticks and took a tentative bite. Her eyes widened and she grinned. "This turned out good." She dug in with gusto. The younger girl wasn't eating like a human vacuum cleaner any more since she didn't have to fight with her father. She was working on slowing down, but found the habit of eating fast a hard one to break.

After a while Ranma asked, "So Nabiki, how'd the interview go?"

The middle Tendo seemed to think about it. "They told me they would call me on Friday to let me know if I got the job. I think it went pretty well. I answered all their questions, had some good ones of my own. The interviewer seemed impressed with me.

Both the other girls congratulated the middle Tendo girl. She took a sip of her tea and said, "I didn't actually stop by to tell you about the interview. I could have done that over the phone."

"Oh?" Noriko asked, "So what brings you here today?"

Nabiki patted the file folder on the table and asked, "You both knew that I study genealogy as a hobby, didn't you?"

The blonde and the redhead both nodded. They had heard the brunette speak of it. From time to time she would relate stories of what some of her ancestors did as dinner table talk. Nabiki continued, "I was looking into Tendo ancestry for about the time when you were a child." She nodded to indicate Noriko.

The former man frowned and asked. "What does your ancestry have to do with me?"

"More than you might think," was the evasive reply.

Noriko rolled her eyes at the semi teasing way that Nabiki had said that. She asked, "How much are you going to charge to tell me about it?"

It was a valid question, but Nabiki needed to verify her facts. "I'm not even sure of the connection. Tell you what, I'm going to take a chance on this and tell you for no money up front. If it checks out and you are willing, you can pay me what a professional genealogist would charge."

The blonde's eyes went wide. "That's a better deal than you've offered me for a while. I accept."

The brunette smiled and stated, "When you were telling us your personal tale of woe you never actually mentioned your family name. Was it Takayama?"

Noriko's eyes started to look like they were ready to pop out of her head. "Where did you ever hear that name? I haven't even spoken my family name since before you were born."

Instead of answering the question, Nabiki asked another one of her own. "Did you have a sister named Akane?"

The older girl now looked troubled as if it hurt to think of her past. She said, "I had two sisters, but the oldest was named Akane."

Nabiki nodded. "It's just as I thought. 288 years ago a girl named Takayama Akane married a minor lord by the name of Tendo Kenichi. They were my multi-times great grandparents. Our current Akane is named after her."

Noriko motioned for Nabiki to continue. "According to the _official_ records great grandma Akane had an older brother who died at the age of 11. However I was able to find a fragment of ancestor Akane's diary that said her brother was disowned and kicked out of the family."

The blonde looked totally stunned. After a moment to regain her composure, Noriko asked, "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Nabiki got up and walked around the table. She knelt down next to the older woman and suddenly threw her arms around the blonde haired woman with her face lit up in a big smile. "Yes! I'm saying you really are a member of our family. You're my Auntie Noriko."

For the first time in a long time Noriko felt herself overcome with emotion. She returned the hug, tears in her eyes. "Oh, Nabiki, my niece. I never thought I'd ever meet up with any of my family after all this time."

Suddenly the blonde let go of Nabiki and in a dejected tone said, "I can't claim the relationship. I was disowned. I'm a ronin."

Ranma came around and put a hand on Noriko's shoulder in an effort to comfort her. Nabiki thought about it and said, "We'll get you into the family one way or another. Even if your S.O.B. idiot father didn't want you, that still doesn't change the fact that you are the brother… I mean sister of one of my ancestors. I'm going to start working on Daddy to adopt you as his daughter."

The pigtailed redhead shook her head. This didn't seem to be in character for the Mercenary Girl. "Nabiki, why are you being so nice? This is Happosai in girl form. Why would you be willing to help her?"

The brunette's smile grew wider. "I'm not above exploiting family members to make a few yen, but that doesn't mean I don't care about my family. I just found out that Noriko here _is_ family. Besides that I trust _you_, Little Sister. You like her and if she was still like she was as a man, I don't think you would."

Ranma had to concede to Nabiki's point. "Yeah, I guess that's true."

"Besides," Nabiki added. "Noriko is giving me the chance to get a real job. With all the stuff I was doing at Furinkan, even if I admit that I've had fun with it; I have no illusions about how safe it is. I may be too much of a small fry to attract the attention of the Yakuza or the police, but there is still the risk that I could get arrested for the stuff I'm doing."

She continued, "I was pretty much going to have to stop after I graduate. When I go to college I can't very well run the rackets in a high school and there are already people doing that kind of stuff at the colleges I've applied to. The best I could hope for would be working for someone else. No, I would prefer to get that internship and work at that while I'm going to college. That way I can make a clean break from being the Ice Queen."

She grinned even bigger. "I'm pretty sure Kasumi is going to take your offer and let you pay her way through college, then medical school later. She deserves something good to happen to her."

Nabiki laughed. "The side benefit is that without me to manage money and Kasumi to play mom, Daddy will have to get off his butt and start teaching again and Akane will have to learn to cook. I suppose daddy could cook. What food he can make isn't the toxic sludge Akane produces, but it's nothing you'd want to make a steady diet of. I can make rice, instant ramen other stuff like that so I'll never starve. On top of that I'm the Queen of take-out. I guess I'll have to hope that whoever I marry can cook." 

Ranma nodded. Yes, it probably would do the tomboy a world of good. Still, she was curious about one thing. "Aren't you going to swear vengeance on me or something for what I said to Akane at school this morning?"

"Vengeance?" Nabiki sounded puzzled. "Why would I do that? You told her stuff that she needed to hear. She's been 'daddy's darling baby girl' for too long. Maybe what you told her will make her wake up and realize she can't have everything her own way. I did think that bit about taking the mallet away and using it on her was a little harsh, but deserved. I think it would be better for her to get beaten with her own mallet than for her to kill someone with it."

Ranma bowed her head for a moment. "The main reason why I let her hit so often before me was because I was afraid she'd hit someone else if I dodged. As hard as she hits me, she could kill a person who wasn't a martial artist."

"Or at least hurt them badly," Nabiki agreed. "I did what I could to try and rein her in, but there's not much I could do. If I pushed her too hard, I'd be the next one getting bashed."

She took another sip from her tea then set down the cup. Standing up she said, "I can't stay. I've got stuff to do and one of the first things is to talk to daddy about adopting you, Noriko. I'm not going to let a little thing like you being a ronin keep you from being a part of the family."

The brunette placed a kiss on Noriko's cheek and another on Ranma's then headed out. For some minutes after Nabiki left, both of the remaining girls just stayed where there were.

Ranma lightly rubbed her cheek where Nabiki had kissed her and said, "That was… different. She's acting like a real person instead of the Ice Queen."

Noriko nodded. "I've suspected that the Ice Queen is just a mask that she wears. I doubted it was the real her."

"Was that the real Nabiki we just saw?" Ranma said in a musing tone.

"I hope so," the blonde said. "She was much nicer."

"So you're really related to the Tendo family?" Ranma said.

"So it would seem." Noriko wasn't sure how to feel about that. After a moment she continued, "I know I did say they were the closest thing I had to a family, but I didn't mean it literally."

She took a moment to think some more. "My sister Akane was just nine years old when I was disowned. I didn't stay in touch with the family, so I didn't know she got married. A minor lord sounds about like the kind of person that he-who-sired-me would arrange for her to marry."

Ranma sat back down and set to eating again. Between bites she said, "I think I've given Ucchan enough time to think about what you said to her. I should go pay her a visit tomorrow after I get back from my magic lesson."

The blonde nodded. "You're right. She's had enough time to think about it. I hope she's not going to be stubborn about it."

The redhead grunted her assent as she chewed on a morsel. She would see the next day.

Author's Note: So Nabiki is now on Noriko's side. It is safe to assume that the middle Tendo is the sort of person who is better to have with you than against you. Noriko's adoption would remove another obstacle in her bid to possibly getting married to Ranma.


	24. Chapter 22 Ukyo and Konatsu

Happi's Redemption

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren't mine either. Please don't sue me.

This story takes place after the end of the manga.

Chapter 21

Ukyo and Konatsu

At school, the atmosphere between Ranma and Akane remained frigid. Akane opened her mouth a few times as if she want to say something, but Ranma turned away to look at one of his schoolbooks whenever she did. As to how Akane reacted to the cold shoulder treatment, Ranma didn't know and didn't care.

That afternoon, the lesson with Watanabe-san was more basic magic and practice of the teleportation techniques that Ranma had already learned. Ranma had the clothing swap mastered almost well enough to do it at the same time as a gender change. Ranma wished Watanabe-San would let her advance to teleporting herself. The train ride was tedious as well as being more costly now that she was riding inside instead of on the roof.

When she got back to Nerima, Ranma stopped by the apartment for a quick bite to eat before she headed to Ucchan's. While Ukyo usually served Rannma okonomiyaki for free, the chef might not be in the best mood. She took a little time to work on her studies and then sat with Noriko, who was watching TV. In accordance with her stated plan to get Ranma used to being touched, she had her arm around the smaller girl's shoulders.

When Ranma judged that it was late enough for the dinner rush at the restaurant to have subsided, she headed out. She was dreading this confrontation.

At the Tendo home, Nabiki approached her father. He and Genma had just finished a game and Nabiki chose that moment to speak up. "Daddy, could I talk to you for a moment?"

The mustachioed martial artist looked at his daughter and inwardly groaned. He hoped she wasn't going to get on his case about starting up teaching again. "Yes, Nabiki-Chan? What did you want to talk about?"

The girl said, "When I was doing genealogy research, I found out something interesting. I didn't want to tell you about it until I could confirm it."

Soun nodded. This sounded safe enough. Long distant ancestry didn't seem like something that could come back to bite him on the butt. He asked, "What did you learn in your research, dear?"

The brunette grinned. "I found out that Noriko is related to our family."

The Tendo patriarch reeled back as if struck. "Are you saying that the Master is one of our ancestors?"

Genma reached over the game table and patted his friend on the shoulder. "You have my sympathy, Tendo. I'd hate to have him... uh, her in _my_ family."

Shaking his head, Soun demanded, "Explain how such a thing is possible."

With a smile Nabiki replied, "You know the ancestor you and Mom named our Akane after?"

Soun nodded. He remembered the story.

"Noriko confirmed it," Nabiki said. "Multi-time great grandmother Akane was Noriko's sister."

Thinking back to Happosai's tale of his past, Soun saw a flaw in that argument. He pointed out, "Master Hap... I mean Noriko said that she was thrown out of the family. That makes her a ronin. It would also mean she has no family and hasn't for centuries."

Nabiki now looked angry. "Just because her father was an idiot who ruined her life, doesn't mean you have to be an idiot too. Noriko was kicked out of the family through no fault of her own and for no good reason."

She had prepared her arguments ahead of time because she had expected this. Nabiki said, "If Noriko's father was normal, he would have just waited after his first child was a girl. He would have gotten the son he wanted with no need to cast any spells on his daughter. Instead he did something terrible to his firstborn child. Then, when the boy didn't turn out like he wanted, the idiot cast him out of the family like he was some kind of trash. He made a terrible mistake."

The brunette shook her head. "Part of that mistake has been corrected. Noriko is finally a woman like she was meant to be. From the panty-thieving pervert he was, she has become a nice woman. I like her and I know Ranma likes her too. She's helping Ranma, she's helped me and is offering to help Kasumi and Akane. I think it's time we paid her back and correct the rest of the mistake her father made."

"'Pay her back?'" Soun was clearly confused. "What do you mean, by 'correct the rest of the mistake?" I can't undo her father making her a ronin. It would be impossible to reverse something that was done nearly three hundred years ago."

"Oh really?" The young girl challenged. "I've read of cases in history when a current family would reinstate a former ronin back into the family. Of course in all of those cases it was posthumous, but it was done to remove a stain on the family honor. The major difference is that Noriko is still alive because of the magic spells used on her."

Trying to be reasonable, Soun pointed out, "Even if that has been done in the past, Noriko wasn't a Tendo. As I remember the family of Ancestor Akane, she was a Takayama. I don't have the authority to have Noriko reinstated back to that family."

Nabiki wasn't going to be deterred. She had known about this. She said, "That doesn't mean you can't contact the Takayama family and ask them if they would be willing to reinstate Noriko. But even if you can't convince the Takayama's to restore Noriko to her old family, you can bring her into ours. You even brought it up yourself. You could adopt her as your daughter."

"What!" Soun wasn't quite sure he could believe what he was hearing. "Why would you want that person in our family?"

Nabiki's tone was pleading now, "Because she's changed. She's trying to make up for what she did and they way she was when she was a man. If she was still like she was as Happosai, I wouldn't want anything to do with her. The way she is now, I'd be proud to have her as a sister."

Kasumi came up to join the conversation. "I have to agree. I know I haven't spent much time with her since she became a woman, but I can still tell. Noriko has changed for the better. I would be glad to have her as another sister."

The youngest of the Tendo children had been listening and now walked up to the group. Hoping that Akane would reject the idea asked, "Akane, what do you think of the idea of adopting Noriko into the Tendo family?

The black haired girl looked thoughtful. After a moment she responded, "I can't say I don't still have reservations about Noriko, but she did offer to train me when you won't anymore. I can't say that I'm happy with the idea of having a female Happosai as a sister. Still, if Kasumi and Nabiki are in favor of it, I won't fight it. At least they aren't asking me to live in the same house with her." Perhaps this would also be a way to gain some small revenge on her father for his neglect since the death of her mother.

Soun looked at Genma but decided not to ask. He already knew what Saotome would say and could guess what Nodoka would say. If even Akane wasn't going to fight it, it didn't look like he was going to catch a break on this. Hoping to delay the issue, Soun said, "Could I take some time to think about it?"

In a soothing tone, Nabiki said, "Of course you can. Just don't get the idea that we will forget about this. We'll talk of this again." The middle daughter resolved that she would use her contacts to have the adoption papers drawn up and made ready. By the time she was done, all that would be needed was a signature or stamp with a hanko. She left to make preparations.

When Ranma entered through the door of the Ucchan restaurant, Konatsu was there. He was in his usual waitress outfit of a kimono with an apron and looked like a pretty girl. He came to the redhead and said, "Greetings Ranma-Sama! Would you like your usual?"

The girlish young man was smiling. In fact Ranma didn't think she'd ever seen him this cheerful before. Still unsure of her reception, the girl said, "Sure. Just one this time because I did eat at home before I came here." 

"Very good. I'll go put in the order. I'm sure Ucchan will want to talk to you."

Ranma sat down at a table then something penetrated her mind. Since when did Konatsu call Ukyo by the pet name Ranma had been using for her? Before, he had always called her Ukyo-Sama or something else ultra-respectful. What was going on?

Ranma glanced toward the kitchen just in time to see Konatsu put his arms around Ukyo's waist and kiss her on the neck. The chef not only tolerated the embrace, but she also leaned back into the ninja with her eye closed and a goofy smile on her face.

Oho! So that was it. Ukyo had finally discovered the love Konatsu held for her and apparently returned it. It was about time! It explained why Konatsu was so happy.

The red haired girl felt a momentary pang of jealousy but she suppressed it. She should be happy for her friend. Ukyo was moving on, just as Ranma had hoped she would.

It was not long after that the chef herself brought Ranma's order to the table. As she moved there seemed to be an extra little sway to her hips and a spring to her step. Konatsu seemed to be watching the chef's movements very closely. Ukyo greeted, "Hi, Ranchan. Why didn't you sit at the counter?"

The redhead shrugged and said, "I wasn't sure what kind of mood you'd be in, and thought maybe you'd want to talk in private."

"Nah, I'm Ok anywhere you want to talk." She got a sort of dreamy expression as she glanced over at her waitress.

"So Ucchan, Noriko told me what she talked about with you on Saturday," Ranma reported. She asked, "Are we still friends?"

It seemed to be an effort for the chef to bring her mind back into focus. She finally said, "Yeah, Ranchan, we're still friends. I'm sorry I made such a pain of myself over the whole fiancé and marriage issue."

Ranma looked over to where Konatsu was cleaning tables. She turned back to her friend and said, "So I guess you finally noticed how Konatsu feels about you."

Ukyo blushed cutely. "Is it that obvious?"

"Obvious?" The pigtailed girl grinned. "Kissing in the kitchen and looking over at him every few minutes with that silly expression on your face? Yeah, I'd say it's obvious. I knew he had been in love with you for a long time, but when did you figure out you're in love with him?"

Ukyo looked over at Konatsu again with the same silly expression. After a moment she turned back to Ranma and explained, "It was Saturday night. You could say Hap… I mean Noriko dropped quite a few bombshells on me. After she left I guess you could say I was sort of on autopilot for the rest of the night. After we closed up and the last of the customers left that night I broke down crying."

Hearing this, Ranma could guess what was going to come next. Ukyo said, "Konatsu came to me and tried to cheer me up. It started with him just putting a hand on my shoulder but then I hugged him and kept crying. Somewhere in there I started to kiss him and he… kissed back. It got more intense and… well, I think the expression is that we, 'did what comes naturally.'"

She blushed again. "That was when I realized that I love him too. I don't know when it started, but I guess I sort of ignored it, concentrating on you. We've… been going at it like newlyweds every spare moment we get outside work or school."

Laughing, Ranma held up her hands to forestall further details, "Ok Ucchan, that's more information than I really needed. So, are the two of you going to get married?"

Ukyo smiled and replied, "We've talked about it. Ko-Chan was saying he might like to do a Western ceremony with him in the pretty gown and me in the tux. As good as he looks in a dress, I think we could actually pull it off."

The redhead tried to picture it in her mind and found she could do so easily. "You'd be really handsome in a tux, Ucchan. I don't know if beautiful is the right word to use for a guy, but I think Konatsu would look really good in a wedding dress."

The chef giggled. "He would, wouldn't he? I should feel jealous that my groom looks better in a wedding dress than I do, but I don't really care."

"_This girl's got it bad_," Ranma thought with a smile. Wanting matters back to a practical level, she asked, "Did you look at that catalog?"

Ukyo looked confused for a moment before she said, "Oh, for the yattai. Well, like I said, we've both been kind of… busy. I haven't really had time to look at the catalog. I don't suppose we could just agree to end the engagement. I don't think my father would settle for that. Could I have some more time to think about it?"

Reaching across the table, Ranma patted the back of his friend's hand. "I'm sure Noriko won't mind when she hears the reason why you haven't picked a yattai yet."

The chef looked thoughtful. She said, "At school I heard that you've broken things off with Akane. The rumor is that you told her off and threatened to bash her with her own mallet. Is that true?"

With a shrug, the redhead said, "I'm surprised the rumor mill got even that close to the truth. I did tell her off and told her that if she pulled the mallet on me ever again I'd take it away from her, _then_ I'd bash her with it."

The girl with the long brunette hair nodded. "How did things work out with the Amazons?"

"I'm released from the Kisses of Marriage and Death and they're moving back to China. Shampoo wasn't too happy, but Mousse was delighted."

Ukyo laughed. "He would be. I heard that Kuno finally knows that the 'pigtailed girl' and Ranma are the same person. What's up with Kodachi?"

With a frown, Ranma said, "I don't know yet. Noriko and I used Instant Nyanuiichuan water on Kuno to temporarily turn him into a girl. That was what it took for him to believe that I change back and forth. He said he went home as a girl and transformed back to male in front of his sister. He said she believes now, but doesn't know if she's going to give up on me. She has to 'think' about it."

The chef shook her head. "Kami-sama only knows what that crazy chick will decide."

Still frowning, Ranma said, "Personally I'm hoping she'll decide she can't be romantically involved with a sex changing freak. Why are you asking about all the other fiancés?"

"Something Noriko said." Ukyo responded. "She was talking about the pressure the whole fiancé mess was putting on you. I wanted to ask if your parents have eased up off you about the whole honor debt and 'joining the schools' thing?"

The redhead nodded. "Noriko pointed out that the agreement between the families actually specified that if I had been born the wrong gender, that one of my kids could marry one of the Tendo girls' kids. Well… not just the wrong gender but other stuff could do it too. They weren't too happy but they couldn't fight it. They did kick me out of the house. Noriko and I are sharing an apartment."

Ukyo thought furiously for a moment before she decided to take s chance. "I think you should hang onto Noriko. She looks like a keeper." 

"Huh?" Ranma was confused by the apparent change of subject. "What do you mean." 

"I noticed something about the way Noriko was acting when she talked about you," Ukyo explained. "There was something about the tone of her voice and the way she smiled when she talked about you."

Ranma had a suspicion where this was going; however, she still waited for Ucchan to finish.

The chef continued, "I put everything together and accused her. She admitted that she's in love you. She hasn't said anything to you because she wants to wait for you to make up your own mind. She doesn't want to add to the pressure you were under."

The redhead nodded. "I suspected it. I didn't know for sure. I know I'm not always the most observant when it comes to stuff like that, but even I could see it. I don't think I love her as strongly as she feels about me, but I'm getting there. I haven't said anything to her because the way I was raised and the abuse I got left me almost incapable of expressing emotions like that. I can tell you about it, but telling her would be incredibly hard."

Ukyo's heart ached for her friend. Now that she had found the true love of her life, she wanted to help as a friend would. "What are you going to do?"

Ranma told her about the touch training. Noriko was also helping the boy by encouraging him to talk about his feelings. It had been tough at first, but he was learning to loosen up.

The girl said, "When I can hug Noriko without bracing myself for being hit, when I can tell her my feelings without stumbling over the words then maybe we can really get somewhere."

She paused and laughed, "I wonder if marrying the Grand Master of Anything Goes would count as 'joining the schools.'"

Ukyo joined in the laugh. Before she could say anything, Ranma snapped her fingers. "Nabiki came by our apartment yesterday to tell us that she found that Noriko is the sister of one of the Tendo ancestors. Since she was kicked out of the family, she was a ronin but Nabiki is going to try and get Mr. Tendo to adopt her as a daughter. If he did that, me marrying Noriko would count as satisfying the honor agreement between the families without having to wait for the next generation."

The chef laughed harder. "That would be great. It would still be defying your folks while living up to the letter of the agreement." She paused then asked, "Are you really thinking about becoming a doctor?"

The smaller girl nodded. "Yep. There's a doctor in China that thinks I have a talent for it. I helped out in her clinic for a while and I liked the work. I'm going to have to work really hard at school now to make up for time I missed and for sleeping through classes."

"Wow," Ukyo was amazed. "It seems strange to think of you doing something other than martial arts."

"I know, but it's what I want to do," Ranma said. She stood up. "Well, I came by to find out how you felt about the stuff Noriko told you. I guess you bounced back pretty good. I need to get back to the apartment to do homework. I'm still catching up."

"Right!" The chef confirmed. "I won't keep you." 

As Ranma walked out, she noticed Konatsu walk up to Ukyo and the two of them went into a tight hug and a kiss. Like newlyweds indeed.

The redhead had gone about a block when a familiar voice asked, "Excuse me Miss, could you tell me how to get to the Tendo dojo?"

Ranma realized she was wearing a skirt and a sweater this evening and looked fairly different from her normal appearance. Still, how many redheads did one usually see in Japan? She couldn't understand why Ryoga still had a problem with this.

The pigtailed girl said, "Hello, Ryoga. I'm not a 'Miss,' I'm Ranma."

The Lost Boy looked confused, "Ranma? I'm not in China again, am I?"

She shook her head. "No, you're in Japan, Nerima to be exact. I'd take you to the Tendos but I don't live there anymore and it's kind of out of my way."

"Huh?" The wanderer's confusion deepened. "Not living with the Tendos? Why not?"

Mentally bracing herself for the boy's reaction, Ranma said, "I broke up with Akane and her dad kicked me out." 

The bandana wearing boy's expression darkened with anger. "Broke up? What happened?"

Ranma stood with shoulders slumped. "I tried, but the two of us just couldn't get along. I couldn't take all the yelling, the insults, the lack of trust and the malletings. The engagement is off and neither of the other sisters wants to take it over."

"So you just tossed her aside!" The muscular youth was almost shouting.

The red haired girl countered, "Why do you even care? But since you asked, no, I didn't just 'toss her aside.' You have to remember that I've killed to save Akane. You should know, you were there. But it just wasn't working out. You've seen how we fight. Besides that, you have Akari now."

Almost roaring now, Ryoga said, "Akane is still a friend at least. I care about my friends!"

Ranma shook her head. "I thought _I_ was supposed to be your friend. As for Akane being a friend, you might want to approach with caution if you don't want to end up on the dinner table as the main course. Happosai told her that you're P-Chan."

"Damn that little pervert!" Ryoga's ire was momentarily re-directed. It didn't last long as he asked, "Why didn't you stop him?" 

"Have you ever tried stopping the Old Freak from doing what he wanted?" Ranma demanded. "It's not easy."

The Lost boy looked confused now. "Why would he do something like that anyway?"

The girl shrugged and said, "Who knows why he does anything?"

Ryoga's expression shifted from anger to worry as he asked, "Uh… how... how did Akane take the news?"

Ranma resisted the urge to smirk with an effort. She said, "Her first words were, 'I'll kill him!' and she was shouting when she said it. The word 'castrate' was also mentioned. She was much quieter when she said that last part. I think she's calmed down some, but I can't really say how she's feeling right now. Akane and I are not exactly on speaking terms right now."

"What? Why not?" 

Scowling now, Ranma said, "I still don't understand why you care. But if you must know, we didn't get along all that well when we were engaged. Now we don't even have that excuse. So now I mostly don't talk to her, 'cause if I don't talk, I won't yell." 

The Lost Boy stood there and seemed to digest that for a time. When it looked like he couldn't think of something appropriate to say, Ranma pointed and said, "If you want to go see Akari, the Unryu farm is in that direction. I'm sorry I can't give more precise directions but you could stop to ask directions again when you get closer."

Before Ryoga could reply, Ranma had a parting shot, "Since Akane and I aren't engaged anymore and not even living in the same house, you no longer have any more reason to attack me over Akane's feelings. If you want to spar, then look me up, but call or write first. I'm starting to take my schooling seriously and getting time in for fighting isn't as easy as it used to be."

Ryoga was thinking he might ask to spend the night at Ranma's place but before he could, Ranma repeated, "Akari – that way. I've got to go now." She turned and hurried off.

The Lost Boy stood for a moment weighing what he had been told. If Akane knew about his curse now, it would likely be a bad idea for him to show up Tendo Dojo. He idly thought to himself that if he did end up as the main course of dinner there, he hoped it wasn't Akane that cooked him.

After a moment of consideration to regain his bearings, Ryoga tried to remember the direction Ranma had indicated. He headed off in a direction almost at a right angle to the way Ranma had pointed.

Shortly Ranma arrived at the apartment. When she took a seat in the living room, Noriko asked, "Did she pick a yattai?"

The redhead laughed. "She was too busy to look at the catalog."

"Busy?"

At that, the younger girl told of the conversation at the Ucchan's restaurant. Noriko summed it up by saying, "So she was too busy making out and having sex with her boyfriend to look at the catalog?"

When Ranma nodded, Noriko said musingly, "I didn't know the girly ninja boy had it in him. 'Every spare moment,' eh? I would think they would stop at times for food and sleep." Even as she said it, the blonde pictured in her mind the two lovers taking turns feeding each other. The probably would have snuggled up to each other in their sleep. She almost got lost in a fantasy of doing that sort of thing with Ranma, but brought herself back to the present with an effort.

Ranma sat on the couch and put an arm around Noriko's shoulders. It was an effort to keep from cringing when she did that. She didn't think she was ready to try to move to greater levels of intimacy yet. Before she could declare her own feelings, she needed more time. She only hoped that Noriko would be willing to wait.

The redhead reported, "I ran into Ryoga on the way back from Ucchan's. I told him Akane knows about P-Chan."

"How'd he take that?" Noriko asked.

"He looked worried," was her reply. "I told him 'Happosai' told Akane."

The blonde nodded. "He'll eventually find out that I used to be Happosai."

"Yeah," Ranma agreed with a grin. "But learning that the little old man is now a pretty girl will mess with his head pretty good."

The older girl couldn't resist a chuckle at that. "Yes, it will do that."

She thought for a moment before saying. "Well, of all the fiancés, I'd say Ukyo's situation is the best of the lot. From what you tell me it sounds like she's truly happy. I wish there were someone we could get Shampoo or Akane together with (or both)."

Ranma shook her head. "Akane needs to grow up before she can be anyone's girlfriend. The way she is now, I wouldn't wish that violent tomboy on any guy. She'd likely put a boyfriend in the hospital before the end of their first date."

Noriko shook her head sadly. "There's a great deal of truth in what you said. I'm afraid Soun failed badly when it came to that girl. Still, unless she agrees to train as my student, there isn't much I can do for her. Even then, I'm limited."

The redhead looked down at the floor. "It would be so easy to say that it's not my problem anymore. Part of me wants to do just that. A different part of me says there has to be something I can do to help her." 

The blonde girl leaned over and kissed Ranma lightly on the cheek. "That's because you're a good person. If you are going to become a doctor you will need to learn that you can't cure all of the world's ills. You must help those you can and leave the rest to others. It is also especially true that you can't help people who don't want to be helped. I don't know that Akane even recognizes the problems she has."

Ranma blushed a little over the kiss but sighed. "I know I can't fix everything. I guess I'm just going to have to get as good as I can to fix as much as I can."

Noriko smiled at the wisdom of what Ranma had said. She had the feeling that he was accepting her. She hoped that meant that she would be able to stay by his side to help him in that quest to be the best he could be.

They went to their separate rooms and to bed shortly after that. As she settled in under her blankets, Noriko wondered if Ranma had fantasies about her the way she did about him. Well, in truth, the blonde had fantasies about both of Ranma's forms. Although Noriko didn't know it, Ranma was wondering about her as well.

Author's Note: So it appears that Ukyo has found true love. It seems a safe bet that Konatsu will enjoy working in a restaurant more than Ranma would have. What will Ranma do with what Ukyo has told him? Wait to find out. Ryoga now knows that Akane knows about him. He'd be wise to make himself scarce for a while. Of course Ryoga isn't exactly famous for being wise.


End file.
